HIGH TEMPERATURE FUEL CELLS FOR EFFICIENT CONVERSION OF FOSSIL FUEL ENERGY

摘要

The amount of the world's energy supply from renewable sources is increasing rapidly but still constitutes only a small proportion of the total supply. Most of our energy is derived from fossil fuels, so improving the efficiency of the conversion of fossil fuels is critical and can be achieved with electrochemical devices. In particular, high-temperature fuel cells, such as molten carbonate and solid oxide fuel cells, have the fuel flexibility needed to allow for the electrochemical conversion of fossil fuels. This fuel flexibility is a result of high operating temperatures, which also create challenges in the development of materials used in the devices. In this paper, the opportunities for using high-temperature fuel cells as part of a sustainable energy strategy and the materials challenges that need to be overcome to take advantage of these opportunities are discussed.