FUEL 251 |
| A new concept on water management in fuel cells based on the unconventional design of a "Rotating Fuel Cell" or "Rotary Fuel Cell" [RFC] is presented and discussed. The RFC design was found to eliminate the problem of water flooding and enhances ionic conduction. It exploits the centrifugal force of the wheel's rotation to extract the water droplets generated at the cathode. After four hours of operation, a commercial fuel cell mounted normal to the axis of rotation lost all the flooding water at a rotation rate of 120 rpm. At the same rotation rate we recorded a power jump from 0.0 mWcm-2 to 17 mWcm-2 at ambient conditions. There is a strong indication that more power is produced due to fresh flow of air streams and probable increase in ionic conduction. In a separate project the layer-by-layer technique was used to make the membrane electrode assembly in tubular fuel cells. Scanning electron microscopy of ultrathin carbon black electrodes deposited on perfluorosulfonated tubes is presented and discussed addressing advantages of tubular fuel cell design with the RFC concept. |
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Fuel Cell Chemistry and Operation
9:00 AM-12:10 PM, Thursday, 14 September 2006 Palace -- Gold Ballroom, Oral
Division of Fuel Chemistry |