The direct ethanol fuel cell (DEFC) is selected for this research. DEFC uses ethanol in the fuel cell instead of the more toxic methanol. Ethanol is more attractive than methanol by many reasons. Ethanol is a hydrogen-rich liquid and it has a higher specific energy (8.0 kWh/kg) compared to that of methanol (6.1 kWh/kg). Ethanol can be obtained in great quantity from biomass through a fermentation process from renewable resources such as sugar cane, wheat, corn, and even straw. The use of ethanol would also overcome both the storage and infrastructure challenge of hydrogen for fuel cell applications. The experimental apparatus on the micro direct ethanol fuel cell for measuring the cell performance has been set for this research. The objective is to study the micro direct ethanol fuel cell performance for applying with the portable electronic devices. The cell performance is specified in the terms of cell voltage, cell current and power of the cell at room operating temperature and 1 atm for the pressure and also includes the ethanol fuel consumption. The effect of operating temperature change on the electrical production performance is also studied. The steady-state time for collecting each data value is about 5-10 minutes. The results show that with the increase of concentrations of ethanol by volume, the reactant concentration at the reaction sites increases so the electrochemical rate also increases but when it reaches the saturated point the performance gradually drops.
A micro scale model of a solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) involving the mass transfer together with the electrochemical reaction, the electron and ion transports through respective cylindrical shaped electron-and ion-conducting particles inside the electrodes was mathematically developed. The predicted cell performance was showed according to the operating and design condition. The effects of micro-scale electrode geometry on the cell performance were also taken into account. This present study reveals the working mechanisms of SOFC at the micro-scale level, while demonstrating the use of micro-scale relations to enhance the SOFC performance. The accuracy of the presented model was validated by comparing to already existing experimental results from the available literatures.
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