Development and demonstration of alkaline fuel cell technology: An overview of EU-funded projects led by AFC Energy plc. 1
AFC Energy Plc: An Introduction Vision To develop and produce a reliable alkaline fuel cell system at a commercially acceptable cost vs. alternative existing energy systems
AFC Energy Plc: An Introduction History Formed 2006 (listed on AIM) Based in Surrey, UK 48 staff (35 technical) Funded by private investors and EU grants
Enabling mass manufacture of alkaline fuel cells LASER-CELL
Electrode Concept Electron flow Materials Challenges: O 2 O 2 H 2 O OH H 2 O Gas diffusion Liquid diffusion Good electrical conductivity Corrosion resistant in alkaline media High gas permeability Low liquid permeability High catalytic activity Robust Cheap
Electrodes and Stack Concept 6
Substrate Design Requirements The substrate is a highly complex component There are currently no appropriate mass-manufacturing techniques Design Requirements Good electrical conductivity Corrosion resistant in alkaline media Good mechanical strength and flexibility Ability to be machined/extruded in different shapes and sizes Precise hole size/porosity Easy to seal Inexpensive
Laser-Based Manufacturing Novel high volume substrate manufacturing processes based on laser technology Laser drilling Laser sintering 8
Laser Sintering http://www.lasercell.eu/perch/resources/1396533923-mymovie-2.mp4
Laser Drilling Laser optics have vastly improved in the last 10 years Innovative optics can be used to split beam and increase throughput Spatial Light Modulators (SLMs) were used as multi-spot optics for laser drilling of the metals More than 100 W laser power can be utilized for laser drilling with SLMs using a self-build cooling system Possible to drill 4-5X faster vs. single beam drilling of 200 um thick steel. Speed of 1200 holes/second was achieved using multi-beams
Laser Drilling Stack Prototype Stack-scale laser drilled substrates were sucessfully manufactured http://www.laser-cell.eu/perch/resources/mymovie-3.mp4
Estimation of the effective substrate conductivity Provide a model to assess the performance of different substrate designs Predicting ohmic losses in electrode substrate by analytical and numerical methods KOH Ability to integrate the model into the single cell model Anode Cathode
Ammonia-fuelled alkaline fuel cells for remote power applications ALKAMMONIA
Fuel Streams and Markets
PROJECT TARGETS AND ACHIEVEMENTS Cracker catalyst durability: 1000 hours surpassed Catalyst developed by Acta based on Ru Cs on alumina support Operational temperature defined at 550 C relatively low for a cracker
System and Cartridge testing Progress: Stack testing using pre-prototype AFC system underway Improved system design work complete Controller development work nearing completion next steps: 2 prototype AFC systems to build and test Integration work with cracker assembly
Demonstration of a 500kWe alkaline fuel cell installation POWER-UP
KORE system AFC Energy s first large scale industrial platform Up to 0.5 MW/hr Installation based at Air Products, Stade Germany Transition to high volume manufacture
KORE in build 19
Scale-Up: Continuous Process Using high volume processes from the baking and plastics industries 20
Gas Diffusion Layer Extrusion 21
Automated Stacking https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m6lob00r53s
Highlights Laser Cell Scale-up of laser-drilling process to economical speed Development of novel stack prototype Modelling has led to new fluid plate design Alkammonia Low Temperature cracking catalyst AFCEnergy s fuel cell resilience to ammonia fuel seen Power-Up Scaled-up systems Scaled-up manufacture
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