Pictures of Real Fuel Cells
Solid Polymer Fuel Cell
The picture below is of the 275 HP (205kW) fuel cell engine that is being used in buses
in Canada and some North American states. It is produced by Ballard Power Systems Inc. of
Canada.
The fuel cell is being prepared for installation in the bus that can be seen in the
background, and the men working on it give a good idea of its size. You can probably see
that the fuel cell is in two halves, and that there is some complicated pipework feeding gases to the cells.
Between the two halves is the electric motor (which connects to the drive shaft) and other control
equipment.
You should also be able to see some cylindrical tanks in the roof of the bus. These are used to
store the hydrogen at high pressure. Normally they cannot be seen, as they will be covered by a
hatch cover.
See the separate page on the different types of fuel cell
for further details of solid polymer fuel cells.
Phosphoric Acid Fuel Cell
The picture below shows a 200 kW power plant as manufactured by the ONSI corporation
in the USA. It runs off methane (natural gas), and as well as 200 kW of electrical power
it also produces about 200kW of heat energy in the form of a continuous supply of very hot water.
The unit shown is 10 feet, by 10 feet by 18 feet. It is large because as well as the fuel cell
it also contains the equipment for "reforming" the natural gas (methane) into hydrogen, and the
electrical circuits for converting the DC power generated by the fuel cell into the AC power needed
by the mains.
This fuel cell is used in Combined Heat and Power systems. It is an ideal power source for CHP because
it is virtually silent and converts a high proportion of the gas energy into electricity. The
overall efficiency is about 80%. 40% of the input energy is converted to electricity, 40% to useful heat, and 20% is lost.
See the separate page on the different types of fuel cell
for further details of phosphoric acid fuel cells.
Other Pictures
For a superb range of pictures and diagrams illustrating fuel cells you we recommend an excellent new
book, "FUEL SYSTEMS EXPLAINED", by J.Larminie and A.Dicks, published by J.Wiley & Sons,
ISBN 0471 49026 1. It is available from April 2000 in the UK, and from June in the USA/Canada.