Carbonate fuel cell Products

H.C. Maru and M. Farooque, FCE, Molten Carbonate Fuel Cell Product Design Improvement, Prepared for U.S. DOE/DARPA, Annual Report, DE-FC21-95MC31184, Pages 5-9, December 1999. 

Fig. 23. (a) Experimental IR-free overpotentials in MCFC-based separator. Cell performance 0.25% C02 Feed. All curves calculated [32] (b) C02 production scheme using molten carbonate fuel cell stack. 

Cavallaro, S. Freni, S., Syngas and electricity production by an integrated autothermal reforming molten carbonate fuel cell system. Journal of Power Sources 1998, 76,190-196. 

The principal product from the reforming reaction, which is H2, is consumed in the anode reaction. Figure 35 is a picture of a molten carbonate fuel Cell [316], It is composed of a stack of many superposed cells, each cell having a thickness of 5 mm and an area of 1 m2. 

Simon, G. de, Parodi, F., Fermeglia, M., Taccani, R. (2003). Simulation of process for electrical energy production based on molten carbonate fuel cells. /. Power Sources 115, 210-218. 

Wendt, H. Boehme, O. Leidich, F.U. Brenscheidt, T. Materials and production technologies of molten carbonate fuel cells. In Proceedings—Electrochemical Society, Proceedings of the Third International Symposium on Carbonate Fuel Cell Technology, 1993 Vol. 93-3, 485-495. 

Bohme, O. Leidich, F.U. Salge, H.J. Wendt, H. Development of materials and production technologies for molten carbonate fuel cells. Int. J. Hydrogen Energy 1994, 19 (4), 349-355. 

Fuel cells can be used to generate electricity, heat, and hydrogen. FuelCell Energy uses this technique in its molten carbonate fuel cell. Some solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) companies are developing similar products. 

Molten carbonates have been receiving attention due to the development of the molten carbonate fuel cell that uses CO2 as a reactant. CO2 easily reacts with salts and other impurities to form highly corrosive products. 

Methane is a stable molecule and can typically be activated only at HT, e.g., above 650 °C in the steam reforming process. Recently, however. Spinner and Mustain (2012, 2013) have reported that methane could conceivably be activated in a room temperature carbonate fuel cell based on an AEM, and a novel catalyst that could produce the carbonate ion from O2 and CO2 at the cathode (Figure 15.33). The carbonate ion diffuses through the AEM and partially oxidizes methane at a NiO—Z1O2 composite anode catalyst to produce oxygenates such as formaldehyde and methanol with syngas. Such LT methane activation, if feasible, could allow the selective production of platform chemicals, rather than syngas, directly from natural gas. 

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