CHEE Seminar: Dominic Gervasio
Monday, October 11, 2021 – 3:00 PM
Dominic Gervasio, CHEE Associate Professor
“Fuel Cell instead of battery powered electric vehicles”
Harshbarger Bldg., Room 206
Social Hour: Harshbarger 118B, 2:30 to 2:50 PM
ABSTRACT
When OPEC (the organization of petroleum exporting countries) disrupted global oil markets in 1973, fuel cells were touted as the way to provide clean efficient automotive power and extend the life of petroleum reserves by roughly a factor of 4, the ratio of fuel cell efficiency to internal combustion engine efficiency. However, almost a half-century later, automobile engines are still burning gasoline, and urban pollution may be a bigger problem than oil supply and it has become clear that a battery power source alone is not the answer for automobile power. So, where we stand?
Polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells (PEM FCs) are needed to withstand shock and vibration of automobile applications, and even using hydrogen and air, Nafion is not an acceptable PEM. Although Nafion is stable, using it as the PEM leads to system complications. Can we finally have practical terrestrial fuel cells for clean and efficient power for automobiles? And other applications, like emergency power, remote telecom and residential power, load levelers, etc.? Process design indicates we can have these using a PEM conducting proton at around 150C is needed.
An overview of past and required fuel cell developments will be presented. The bias of this talk is that developing membranes that conduct only protons at temperatures well above 100oC, allows a compact, efficient and cost-effective power SYSTEM and that this is possible using protic salt instead of conventional acid electrolyte membranes.
BIO
Don Gervasio is an associate professor of Chemical Engineering in the Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering at the University of Arizona in Tucson, Arizona USA. His interest in fuel cell research for over 35 years mainly concerns new electrolyte membranes, that conduct only protons, because these can give new designs for making practical fuel cell power sources for terrestrial use. His other research interests are physical electrochemistry, fuel processing reactors, corrosion, sensors, material processing and electrochemical reactors using molten salts.