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Pakistan Excel English School

IGCSE chemistry Prepared by Ms sadaf shabbir

Fuel cells
 Fuel cells work in a different way than chemical cells. Fuel cells produce a voltage continuously, as
long as they are supplied with: a fuel and oxygen (from the air)

Hydrogen Fuel Cell

 Made up of an anode (platinum) and a cathode …(platinum)
with an electrolyte (acid or alkali) contained between them.

 It generates electricity. (opposite to electrolysis)

Alkali electrolyte (KOH)

 Oxidation at anode

Hydrogen enters at anode , reacts with hydroxide ions and make water.
(electrons lost) .The electrons travel through the external circuit.

 Reduction at cathode

Oxygen supplied to the cathode reacts with water and gains electrons

to make hydroxide ions in the electrolyte.

 The electricity provided by the fuel cell can be used to run an electric vehicle or to power other
equipment.
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Acid electrolyte

Fuel cell vehicle Petrol or diesel vehicle

Strengths Quiet in use, only waste product is Petrol and diesel are easier to store,
water, fewer moving parts thousands of filling stations

Weaknesses Hydrogen is more difficult to store, Noisy in use, carbon dioxide is a waste
few filling stations product, many moving parts

 Fuel cells have different strengths and weaknesses, depending on the use. For example, fuel cells
are used in spacecraft and vehicles.

Fuel cells in spacecraft

Hydrogen-oxygen fuel cells are used in spacecraft. Their strengths include:

 they have no moving parts to maintain

 they are small for the amount of electricity they produce

 the water they produce can be drunk

Advantages of a Hydrogen Fuel Cell

 1. It can be a renewable source of electricity if the hydrogen comes from a renewable resource.

 2. It does not produce pollution or contribute to global warming because the only product is water.

Disadvantages of a Hydrogen Fuel Cell

 1. Each fuel cell only makes a small voltage, therefore expensive.

 2. Hydrogen is explosive and difficult to store.

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 3. If the hydrogen does not come from a renewable resource but is made from methane, then the
electricity produced from the fuel cell is also not renewable.

Worksheet