JHIA-MS

A fuel cell is equipment generated using the reaction of hydrogen and oxygen (or air).

Since the use efficiency of a fuel cell of energy is high, it is useful for energy saving.

For this reason, while it is effective for global warming prevention, the amount of discharge of sulfur oxide (SOx) or nitrogen oxide (NOx) can be controlled, and it is environment-friendly energy.

The fuel cell starts from the experiment of the glove lord in Britain on whether electricity being able to be made from hydrogen and oxygen in 1839 getting a hint from electroanalysis of water, and the success and the discovery.
Then, as a result of a research piling up, NASA was also adopted, and it was carried also in the spaceship Apollo.
As for the accident of "Appllo 13" turned into a movie, the oxygen tank for breathing and fuel cells exploded.
However, since capacity was too large for attaining general utilization, the miniaturization was indispensable.
It became around 1986, the Ballade Power Systems Company of Canada succeeded in the miniaturization, and the possibility of utilization increased.
And research continues being done all over the world and it has continued up to now.

The kind and the feature of a fuel cell are as follows.

Type	Reactive gas	Electrolyte	Operating temperature ℃	Power generation efficiency %
Polymer Electrolyte(PEFC)	Hydrogen	Ion-exchange membrane	80	35〜45
Phosphoric-Acid(PAFC)	Hydrogen	Phosphoric-acid	200	35〜45
Molten Carbonate(MCFC)	Hydrogen、CO	Zirconium oxide	650	45〜60
Solid-Oxide(SOFC)	Hydrogen、CO	Sodium carbonate/lithium carbonate	800〜1000	50〜60

The following three are expectation for the use of the fuel cell.

(1)	Car
(2)	Home cogeneration power generation
(3)	Business-use cogeneration power generation
(4)	The power source for mobile
	Notes: Cogeneration is exhaust heat use of hot water by exhaust heat generated when it power generation with a fuel cell.