Future Alternative Energies:

Hydrogen Fuel Cells

Bradley Hallier 5/28/2010

Research Question
• Can I build an effective, cost
efficient Hydrogen (PEM)
Fuel Cell that can
practically replace “non-
green” energy sources?
 Why Fuel Cells?

• Learn about new technologies

• Improve current systems
• They’re interesting
What is a Hydrogen Fuel Cell?

• Similar to a battery
• HENERGYH+H+OH20 (Nice and
Strickland)

• Does not store energy

http://estarfuturecorp.com/fcworks/FCStack.png
What is a Hydrogen Fuel Cell?
(Cont)

http://www.chem.umass.edu/masscrest/fuelingthefuture/images/fuelcell.jpg
 Advancement of Research
• Moved from how they work to how to build
one
• Initiated contact with researchers
• Initiated contact with fuel cell vendors
• Searched for Hydrogen Vendors
• Began plans for a Hydrogen Production System
 Contacting Researchers

• Sent emails asking for help

• Mr. Kevin Davies at Georgia Institute of
Technology
• Mr. John Turner at Valeswood Fuel Cells
• Numerous other individuals willing to
help
Contacting Vendors
• Sent 13 emails to Fuel Cell
Distributors
• Google searches
• Past experience
 Vendor Email Structure

• Explained who I am and what I am doing

• Used semi-jargon vocabulary and specifics
• Asked for anything that could be contributed
• Thanked reader for time
• Overall short length
Vendor Contact Results
• Surprised at helpfulness
• Acquired 1 PEM cell
• Received a 5-cell stack
• Received lots of help and
recommendations
Obtaining Hydrogen
• Required >99.9% pure
• Local distributors carried it
in large tanks at high
pressure
• Was not cost effective
 Isolating Hydrogen Myself
• Forced to obtain it manually
• Chose electrolysis over chemical
means
• Went through many revisions of an
electrolyzer
Electrolyzer Design 1
Electrolyzer Design 2
Electrolyzer Design 3
Electrolyzer Design 3 (cont)
 Future Plans

• Use the system to test Fuel Cell

designs
• Determine what makes different
designs superior to others
• Use data to create a functional cell
 Works Cited
• Nice, Karim, and Jonathan Strickland. “How Fuel Cells Work.” HowStuffWorks. How Stuff
Works Inc, n.d. Web. 13 Nov. 2009. <http://auto.howstuffworks.com/‌fuel-
efficiency/‌alternative-fuels/‌fuel-cell.htm>.
• University of Massachusetts Amherst. “Individual Fuel Cell" Illustration. Fueling the Future:
Center for Chemical Innovation. 2009
<http://www.chem.umass.edu/masscrest/fuelingthefuture/images/fuelcell.jpg>.
• Microsec R&D Inc. “1000W Stack" Illustration.  Microsec R&D Inc. Electronic Product
Design. 2009 <http://www.microsec.net/1000w.jpg>.