Alternative Energy

Electrochemical extraction of energy from hydrogen using fuel cells is a very highly approved, clean and efficient method of meeting our power needs. It must however be noted that regarding the concept of the hydrogen vehicle, burning/combustion of hydrogen in an internal combustion engine (IC/ICE) is often confused with the electrochemical process of generating electricity via fuel cells (FC) in which there is no combustion (though there is a small byproduct of heat in the reaction). Hydrogen combustion is similar to petroleum combustion (minus the emissions). 

How it Works

A fuel cell comprises of 2 electrodes- one positive and one negative. These are separated by an ionic-conducting electrolyte and electrical insulator. Now, unlike a battery where both the energy and power is harnessed in the electrodes, the underlying principle of a fuel cell is to have the reaction catalysts only in the electrodes and to generate electricity when the fuel cell is supplied with an oxidant and a fuel (reducer) from an outside reservoir. What that means is that, while a battery gets energy from its own chemical reactions, a fuel cell needs an external agent for the same, in the form of an oxidant. The oxidant is generally oxygen from the surrounding air while the fuel is stocked, as a gas, solid or liquid depending on the application.

Advantages:

• Once fully useable with appropriate technological advancements, the magnitude of energy generated will be immense and can easily replace conventional fuel sources entirely.
• It’s a much cleaner method. Hydrogen fuel cells emit only water, while direct methane or natural gas conversions (whether IC or FC) generate carbon dioxide emissions.