Three Common Questions
Where did fuel cells come from? The first fuel cell was built in 1839 by Sir William Grove, a Welsh judge and gentleman scientist. Serious interest in the fuel cell as a practical generator did not begin until the 1960′s, when the U.S. space program chose fuel cells over riskier nuclear power and more expensive solar energy. Fuel cells furnished power for the Gemini and Apollo spacecraft, and still provide electricity and water for the space shuttle.What sort of fuels can be used in a fuel cell? Fuel cells can utilize fuel containing hydrogen, including methanol, ethanol, natural gas, and even gasoline or diesel fuel. Fuels containing hydrogen generally require![]()
a “fuel reformer” that extracts the hydrogen. Energy also could be supplied by biomass, wind, solar power or other renewable sources. Fuel cells today are running on many different fuels, even gas from landfills and wastewater treatment plants.Where does the hydrogen come from? Hydrogen made from renewable energy resources provides a clean and abundant energy source, capable of meeting most of the future’s high energy needs. When hydrogen is used as an energy source in a fuel cell, the only emission that is created is water, which can then be electrolyzed to make more hydrogen the waste product supplies more fuel. This continuous cycle of energy production has potential to replace traditional energy sources in every capacity no more dead batteries piling up in landfills or pollution-causing, gas-guzzling combustion engines. The only drawback is that hydrogen is still more expensive than other energy sources such as coal, oil and natural gas; but researchers are helping to develop technologies to tap into this natural resource and generate hydrogen in mass quantities and cheaper prices in order to compete with the traditional energy sources.