Images from readings will be provided as a hard copy or an electronic form to help in the presentation.

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1 Renewable Energy Fuel Cell Technology Project/LAB Task One: Create a poster, power point, or any other computer based technology to present one of the sections below. Once completed, your job will be to teach the class about your section. After all groups have presented, we will have a great background to participate in the labs. Introduction Solar hydrogen fuel cell How it works? Solar hydrogen fuel cell process Electrolysis of water The law of conservation of mass Images from readings will be provided as a hard copy or an electronic form to help in the presentation. The presentation should include all information from the sections below including all pictures. All members of the group are required to speak about their section. Task two: Students will participate in the labs associated with the Fuel cell car Introduction Energy and transportation are a vital part of modern society and demand is ever increasing. o Fossil fuels have negative consequences and a limited supply. Due to this demand, alternative sources of energy and fuel for transportation are vital. o Solar, wind, hydroelectric, bioenergy, geothermal energy, renewable fuels (hydrogen), fuel cell technology o Hydrogen cars that run with a solar hydrogen fuel cell

2 Solar hydrogen fuel cell Turns hydrogen and oxygen into H2O and supplies electricity to the motor. It can work in reverse to separate water into its elements hydrogen and oxygen creating its own fuel It obtains the initial electricity required from a solar cell How it works? First, the fuel cell splits H2O into hydrogen and oxygen which gets stored in tanks Second, when the electric motor is connected to the fuel cell, the fuel cell combines those two gases into water which produces electricity to run the motor Solar hydrogen fuel cell process 1. Solar panel generates electricity 2. Electricity from solar panel is used for the electrolysis of water 3. Hydrogen gas produced during electrolysis is fuel for fuel cell 4. Fuel cell uses hydrogen and oxygen to generate electricity to power the motor Electrolysis of water Electricity triggers chemical reactions that release hydrogen What do you need for the electrolysis of water? 1. Electrolyte- liquid that conducts an electric current ( H2O with salt crystals) 2. Electrodes- metal plates (platinum) that help current reach the electrolyte. Should be spread apart to help catch gases a. Include an anode and a cathode

3 How does all of this relate to the Law of conservation of mass? Law of conservation of mass- the principle that states that matter is not created nor destroyed during a chemical reaction. During electrolysis in the experiment, water which is made up of two hydrogen s, and one oxygen per molecule is split into its component parts. When water is split, it appears to disappear and turn into gases. When this occurs, the matter is not destroyed it is just changed into gases. The proof is in the gas tanks of the fuel cell car. The hydrogen tank (the larger tank) is double the size of the oxygen and as the electrolysis occurs the gas depth increases at the same rate due to the hydrogen tank being double the size. This is the proof that the matter was not destroyed, thus showing the law of conservation of mass is indeed valid for the experiment. Fuel Cell Experiments Preview the six experiments on the next pages and list some important things you notice about each one below. 1. Battery powered car 2. The solar panel 3. Preparing the Fuel cell car 4. Producing Gas with the solar panel 5. Production of fuel with battery current 6. Running the fuel cell car

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