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Introduction
• The principle of fuel cell was discovered by German
scientist “CHRISTIAN FRIEDRICH SCHONBEIN”
• Based on this principle the first fuel cell was
demonstrated by “SIR WILLIAM ROBERT GROOVE”
• A fuel cell is a device that converts the chemical
energy from a fuel into electricity through chemical
reaction with oxygen or any other oxidising agent
• Fuel cells require a constant supply of fuel and
oxygen so that they can produce electricity
continuously

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Cont..
• They produce zero or very low emissions, especially
Green House Gases (GHGs) depending on the fuel
used.
• Have few moving parts and thus require minimal
maintenance, reducing life cycle costs of energy
production.
• Modular in design, offering flexibility in size and
efficiencies in manufacturing
• Can be utilized for combined heat and power
purposes, further increasing the efficiency of energy
production
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Fuel Cell Design

• It consist of an anode
(negative side), a cathode
(positive side) and an
electrolyte that allows
charges to move between
the two sides of the fuel
cell
• Electrons are drawn from
the anode side to the
cathode through an
external circuit producing
direct current electricity

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Working Principle
• A single fuel cell consists of an electrolyte sandwiched
between two thin electrodes (a porous anode and cathode)
• Hydrogen, or a hydrogen-rich fuel, is fed to the anode
where a catalyst separates hydrogen's negatively charged
electrons from positively charged ions (protons)
• At the cathode, oxygen combines with electrons and, in
some cases, with species such as protons or water,
resulting in water or hydroxide ions, respectively
• The electrons from the anode side of the cell cannot pass
through the membrane to the positively charged cathode

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Cont..
• They must travel around it via an electrical circuit
to reach the other side of the cell
• This movement of electrons is an electrical current.
• The amount of power produced by a fuel cell
depends upon several factors, such as fuel cell type,
cell size, the temperature at which it operates, and
the pressure at which the gases are supplied to the
cell
• Still, a single fuel cell produces enough electricity
for only the smallest applications

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• Therefore, individual fuel cells are typically combined in
series into a fuel cell stack
• A typical fuel cell stack may consist of hundreds of fuel
cells
• Fuel cells are classified primarily by the kind of electrolyte
• This determines the kind of chemical reactions that take
place in the cell, the kind of catalysts required, the
temperature range in which the cell operates, the fuel
required, and other factors
• There are several types of fuel cells currently under
development, each with its own advantages, limitations,
and potential applications

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Difference between battery and

fuel cell
Battery Fuel Cell
• Batteries are closed • Fuel cells and solar cells can
thermodynamic systems be viewed as “open”
that contain a finite and thermodynamic systems that
exhaustible internal supply operate at a thermodynamic
of chemical energy steady state
(reactants) • Produce Energy
• Store Energy • Undependably Scaling (Size
of cell and fuel reservoir)
• Dependent
• High energy density
• Low energy density • Energy is produced as long as
• Reachable or thrown away the fuel is supplied

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Advantages
• High efficiency than combustion cycle
• No moving parts
• No emission
• Easy independent scaling between power
(determined by the fuel cell size) and capacity
(determined by the fuel reservoir size)
• Fuel cells offer potentially higher energy densities
than batteries and can be quickly recharged by
refuelling, whereas batteries must be thrown away
or plugged in for a time-consuming recharge

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Disadvantages
• Cost represents a major barrier to fuel cell
implementation
• Fuel availability (Hydrogen)
• low volumetric energy density
• Hydrogen storage
• Operational temperature

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Fuel Cell Types

• Phosphoric acid fuel cell (PAFC)
• Polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell
(PEMFC)
• Alkaline fuel cell (AFC)
• Molten carbonate fuel cell (MCFC)
• Solid-oxide fuel cell (SOFC)

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Comparison of Fuel Cells

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Polymer Electrolyte Membrane

(PEM) Fuel Cells (PEMFC)
• In polymer electrolyte
membrane (PEM) fuel
cells, protons move
through the electrolyte to
the cathode to combine
with oxygen and electrons,
producing water and heat
• Polymer electrolyte
membrane (PEM) fuel cell
uses a polymeric
membrane as the
electrolyte, with platinum
electrodes

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Cont..
• These cells operate at relatively low temperatures
• Polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) fuel cells is
also called as proton exchange membrane fuel
cells
• PEM fuel cells use a solid polymer as an
electrolyte and porous carbon electrodes
containing a platinum catalyst
• They are typically fuelled with pure hydrogen
supplied from storage tanks or onboard
reformers

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Anode Reaction: H2 → 2H+ + 2e−
Cathode Reaction: ½ O2 + 2H+ + 2e– → 2H2O
Overall Cell Reaction: 2H2 + O2 → 2H2O
• Polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells operate at
relatively low temperatures, around 80°C (176°F)
• Low temperature operation allows them to start
quickly (less warm-up time) and results in less
wear on system components, resulting in better
durability

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• It requires that a noble metal catalyst (typically
platinum) be used to separate the hydrogen's
electrons and protons, adding to system cost
• The platinum catalyst is also extremely sensitive
to CO poisoning, making it necessary to employ
an additional reactor to reduce CO in the fuel gas
if the hydrogen is derived from an alcohol or
hydrocarbon fuel
• Developers are currently exploring
platinum/ruthenium catalysts that are more
resistant to CO
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Direct Methanol Fuel Cell

• Another type of PEM fuel cell is the direct liquid
fuel cell or DLFC where the liquid anode fuel can be
methanol known as direct methanol fuel cell
(DMFC)
• It is similar to PEM fuel cell, where it polymer
membrane as electrolyte
• It also uses noble metal catalyst (typically platinum)
at anode to enable the electrochemical reaction
• Operating temperatures are in the range of 50 –120
°C

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Cont..
• The DMFC relies upon the oxidation of methanol
on a catalyst layer to form carbon dioxide
• Water is consumed at the anode and produced at
the cathode
• Protons (H+) are transported across the proton
exchange membrane (Nafion) to the cathode
where they react with oxygen to produce water
• Electrons are transported through an external
circuit from anode to cathode, providing power to
connected devices

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Cell Reactions
• Anode reaction
CH3OH + H2O ⟶ 6H+ + 6e- + CO2
• Cathode reaction
1½O2 + 6H+ + 6e- ⟶ 3H2O
• Over all reaction
CH3OH + 1½O2 ⟶ 2H2O + CO2

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Reversible voltage (Vrev)

• The reversible energy which is denoted as (Vrev)
is the minimum voltage that is needed to be
supplied in order to start the electrochemical
reaction
• The reversible voltage can be determined
through change in Gibb’s (∆G) free energy
equation.
∆G = ∆H-T∆S
∆G = n F Vrev

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Example Reversible Voltage

• ∆H and ∆S are the standard change in enthalpy
(286 kJ/mol) and entropy of electrolysis
process at temperature (T), at standard
condition (25°C and 1 atm), the Gibbs free
energy for splitting of water is calculated to be
237.2 kJ/mol, Faraday’s (F) constant value is
96485 C/ mole and number of electrons (n) is
2.
• Vrev = ∆G/nF
• Vrev =1.229 V
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Activation voltage (Vact )

• The reversible voltage is not sufficient to keep the
electrochemical reaction active, some extra potential is
supplied known as activation voltage
• The activation voltage is the function of coefficient of
electrode and temperature. The activation voltage for a
given temperature can be calculated using the equations
at constant temperature.

Where, t and S are overvoltage coefficient at electrode in A -1m2 and V respectively,

A and I are area of electrode and current passed through electrodes respectively

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Ohmic voltage
• The voltage loss is developed due to the resistance of
electrolyte, electrodes and leads etc. is collectively
represented as Ohmic voltage

• The Ohm voltage is the function of temperature

• The ohm voltage for a given temperature can be calculated

using the equation

Where ‘r’ is the parameter related to ohm resistance in Ωm2

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Cell voltage (
• Cell voltage or cell over-voltage potential is the total
sum of potential applied in the electrolyser and it is
the sum of reversible, activation and Ohmic voltages
• The cell voltage can be calculated for a given
temperature by the equation

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Physical Interpretation of ΔG =
ΔH - TΔS
• ΔH represents the total energy of the system
• TΔS represents the “unavailable” energy (that
which cannot be converted to useful work)
• Therefore G represents the “free” energy or the
energy available to do useful work

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Thermodynamics of Fuel Cell

• Energy conversion efficiency of a fuel cell is
ratio of the actual voltage at a given current
density to the maximum voltage obtained
under no load (open circuit) conditions

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Thermodynamic Analysis: 1st

Law
• It states that the change in the internal energy (ΔH)
of a closed system is equal to the amount of heat
supplied (Q) to the system, minus the amount of
work (W) performed by the system on its
surroundings

Electrical work is, in general, described by the relation

where Vrev is the cell voltage or reversible cell voltage

and I is the current

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Cont..
• In a fuel cell reaction, electrons are transferred
from the anode to the cathode, generating a
current
• The amount of electricity (IΔt) transferred when
the reaction occurs is given by nF,
• Where, n = number of electrons transferred, F =
Faraday’s constant = 96,493 coulomb's
• So the electrical work can be calculated as
(Work done on the surrounding)
The First Law then becomes:
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Thermodynamic Analysis: 2nd

Law
• Consider the fuel cell to be ideal for now,
meaning that it is reversible and thus behaves
as a perfect electrochemical apparatus
• “ If no changes take place in the cell except
during the passage of current, and all changes
which accompany the current can be reversed
by reversing the current, the cell may be called
a perfect electrochemical apparatus.”

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Cont..
• Heat transferred during a reversible process
was expressed as

• Where, T is absolute temperature and S is

change in entropy
• Combining the First and Second Law analysis,
we get

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Enthalpy of Reaction
• The difference between the heat of formation of
the reactants and products is known as the heat
of reaction
• Let us consider the reaction of formation of
water which is exothermic
H2 + ½O2 = H2O + heat

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• The heat of reaction is calculated by subtracting
the sum of all the heats of formation of the
reactants from those of the products

• Where “hf” represents the heat of formation for

each reactant.
• The heat of formation of any element is zero,
while that of liquid water at 25oC (77oF) is –286
kJ/mol

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Cont..
• Thus

• The sign convention states that the heat of

reaction for all exothermic reactions is negative
• The heat of reaction is given assuming the
reactants and products are both at atmospheric
pressure and 25oC (77oF) where the product
water will be in liquid form

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Gibbs Free Energy

• Similar to the change in enthalpy of a reaction,
as well as the heat of combustion,
• The change in Gibbs free energy of a reaction is
the difference between the sum of Gibbs free
energies of the products and reactants.
• The sign convention is the same as that for
enthalpy, where a negative Gibbs free energy
denotes energy is released from the reaction.

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Cont..
• Change in Gibbs free energy can be given by

• If all the Gibbs free energy could be converted

to electrical energy, then the fuel cell reaction is
said to be reversible
• Then change in Gibbs free energy of the
reaction is related to the voltage of the fuel cell
by the equation

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Cont..
• Change in Gibb’s (∆G) free energy equation can
be represented in terms of enthalpy and
entropy
∆G=∆H-T∆S
• As there is no change in temperature ΔT = 0
• So the equation becomes ∆G=∆H

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Fuel Cell Efficiency

• The fuel cell efficiency is described as the ratio
of the electrical energy produced to the heat
that is produced by burning the fuel
• Efficiency

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Carnot Efficiency
• Efficiency is a measure of usable energy output,
compared to the total energy input of a given
system.
• The theoretical Carnot efficiency of a heat
engine (ηeff) is given by:

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Theoretical Fuel Cell Efficiency

• The energy input is equivalent to the enthalpy of
reaction (combustion), and the useful energy
output is electrical energy produced.
• If all the Gibbs free energy produced is
converted to electricity, then the
thermodynamic fuel cell efficiency at 25oC (77oF)
temperature and 1 atmosphere pressure is given
by ratio of the change in Gibbs free energy (ΔG)
to the change in enthalpy (ΔH) of the fuel cell
reaction (using the HHV of hydrogen)

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Losses in an Actual Fuel Cell

• Activation Losses: These losses are caused by
the slowness of the reaction taking place on the
surface of the electrodes.
• A proportion of the voltage generated is lost in
driving the chemical reaction that transfers the
electrons.
• Ohmic Losses: The voltage drop due to the
resistance to the flow of electrons through the
material of the electrodes.
• This loss varies linearly with current density.
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Cont..
• Concentration Losses: Losses that result from
the change in concentration of the reactants at
the surface of the electrodes as the fuel is used.
• Fuel Crossover Losses: Losses that result from
the waste of fuel passing through the electrolyte
and electron conduction through the
electrolyte.
• This loss is typically small, but can be more
important in low temperature cells.

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Thank You

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