The near future

Although fuel cells are a newborn energy source, as you can see in the video, it is likely to be an important source in a near future. Nowadays fuel cells cannot compete with the internal combustion engine but the rising prices of oil and pollution make this clean energy an important source to consider.

Different countries have started to introduce fuel cell stations and the're doing really well. The first station was built in Reikjavik, Iceland in 2003 but since then other countries have implemented these refueling stations into their services. The leader country in this sector is The US with an important amount of 85 refueling stations allover the country. Japan, Canada, Norway or Sweeden would be other countries who bet for this kind of clean energy.

However, as you can see in the video or in most of websites is that this energy source has only succeed on being comercial for public transport as more than 100 fuel cell propulsed buses are circulating around the world, because although many different type of vehicles have been developped in order to work with hydrogen cells they still being too expensive or not efficient enough but we will write about it in further entries. But I previously mentioned this is a newborn energy and research is needed to improve it and in this blog we will follow that research objectively in spite of the controversy about de real power behind fuel cells.

References: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fuel_cell

Gorka

INTRODUCTION

As you may or may not know, fuel cells are a means of turning the chemical energy of a fuel, Hydrogen in our case, into electricity. Its principle is very simple, as it is only the union of Hydrogen and Oxygen into water.

Scientists discovered that in that reaction electricity was exchanged between Hydrogen and Oxygen, and came up with a way of making use of it. Two panels are connected by a conductor, which enables the flow of charges. Hydrogen is fed into the cell, where it gets in contact with the anode and gives up its charges, then travels through the electrolyte, a substance with charges, and reacts with the Oxygen atoms, which get the charges from the Hydrogen to produce water.

Its efficiency is of between 40% and 60% only with charges, and 85% with the heat of the reaction put into use.

Source: www.wikipedia.com

About us

Hello everyone,

We are students of Tecnun, University of Navarra. As a classwork, we have been asked to follow a certain source of energy, which, in our case, are fuel cells.

Our choice was made due to its cleanness and viability, as well as its sustainability and our interest in the matter.

We hope you find our work of interest, and it goes without saying that  we will do our best.