Sharjah: A successful collaborative research effort coordinated by the American University of Sharjah (AUS) has taken a big step toward solving some of the issues related to fuel cell usages.
Fuel cells are a clean, efficient, and dependable source of energy having a wide range of uses. One such usage is operating vehicles by producing electricity. Fuel cells use a variety of fuels, including hydrogen, natural gas, ethanol, and methanol, because they must be refueled on a regular basis.
New research from AUS, undertaken in conjunction with the University of Sharjah, UAE University, and the University of Wisconsin, examines how altering the membranes of fuel cells can improve efficiency and extend the life of the cells while lowering costs.
“Fuel cell cars run on hydrogen fuel and can be filled from a hydrogen station. As a result, the car will emit water from its exhaust, as opposed to polluting gases, because of the electro-chemical reaction. However, the problem with current polymer electrolyte fuel cells is that they function at a temperature of 80C because their membranes cannot tolerate higher temperatures. At the same time, this low temperature leads to liquid build-up inside the cell. In the long run, this can limit the fuel cell operation and lead to corrosion. Our research focuses on developing new and less expensive membranes that can sustain higher temperatures of 200 C to maintain operation, which means that water vapor will be produced, rather than liquid. This way the fuel cells will last longer, be available at a lower cost and produce clean energy,” said Dr. Amani Al-Othman, Research Team Leader and Associate Professor in Chemical Engineering at AUS.
The findings were published in the International Journal of Hydrogen Energy recently.
The membranes are made up of lower-cost composite materials, according to Dr. Al-Othman, who is hoping to test them further. He said that researchers need to determine next the ideal mix of low-cost materials to employ and test in a high-temperature hydrogen fuel cell.
AUS College of Engineering students are also involved in the research, with their work focusing on creating materials for membranes and energy applications.
