Eco Factor: New material being developed to lower the cost of fuel cells and better its performance.
Fuel cells are often touted as one method to help decrease society’s addiction to fossil fuels. But there is still a lot of work to be done before fuel cells will be ready for mass market to be used in transportation, home heating and portable power for emergencies.
The challenges faced by fuel cells being available today range from low-performance to a high cost. Researchers at the University of Calgary have discovered a new material that allows a polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell, known as a PEM fuel cell, to work at a higher temperature. This discovery is extremely important in terms of increasing the efficiency and decreasing the cost of PEM fuel cells.
Currently, PEM fuel cells can produce energy from hydrogen below 90 °C, just under the boiling point of water. With the use of this new material, energy can be produced at a higher temperature, up to 150 °C. This could ultimately make the fuel cell cheaper to produce because at a higher temperature less expensive metals can be used to convert hydrogen into energy. Currently, platinum is used which is extremely expensive. Also, reactions at a higher temperature would be faster thus increasing efficiency.
Via: University of Calgary [Press Release]
