Alkaline fuel cell: A future energy system

Alkaline fuel cells (AFCs) are amongst the most mature fuel cell technologies having been in use since the mid 1960s by NASA in the Apollo and Space Shuttle programs. The AFC process is revisited to define current operating characteristics as the baseline for future developments of AFC technologies that can take advantage of advances in AWES. The end purpose is to advance a design that connects and shares as many peripherals in an AFC with that of an AWE.; Improvements in the AFC performance can be achieved by keeping the operating temperature below 70°C in order to avoid cell damage, the electrolyte concentration should be kept ∼8M to obtain optimum ionic conductivity, and excess gas is needed for the AFC to start and display stable operation. A forensic investigation was conducted to understand the degradation in performance of the fuel cell. Results showed that improvement in electrochemical performance could be achieved by better catalyst chemistry, structural form and distribution.