Fuel Cells
Fuel cells directly change chemical energy into electricity and heat – very efficiently too and with very low pollution emissions. There is a broad scope of application for fuel cells, and they are currently used in a wide variety of areas. For example, large stationary fuel cell parks in the megawatt range have recently been realised, worldwide more then 200,000 micro co-generation plants based on fuel cells are in operation, and various vehicle manufacturers have already begun series production of fuel-cell powered vehicles. Double digit percentage growth is anticipated in the global market for fuel cells.
Current research priorities
Priorities of the research promoted by the SFOE:
- Basic research in the materials sector, system development, and demonstration and testing of pilot projects.
- PEFC for mobile applications using hydrogen as the energy source
- Solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC) for use in co-generation plants and operation with natural gas/biogas.
- Increasing the life time and reliability of fuel cell systems, modelling and experimental validation of electrochemical processes, development of newer, cheaper and more reliable materials (membranes, inter-connectors, catalyser materials), and integration of fuel cells in overall systems (balance of system).
- Demonstration of the feasibility of the technology by means of pilot projects and demonstration projects.
Further information
Head of Programme
Stefan Oberholzer