DMFC as Battery-Extender in solar-boat application

For special applications Direct Methanol Fuel Cells (DMFC) are close to commercial application or already commercialized today. However for the step from laboratory to a broader market of fuel cells, a significant cost reduction, as well as a lifetime and power density improvement of the systems is needed. The Goals of the BZ-BattExt Project should be reached by applying new knowledge in alternative materials, improved operation strategies and enhanced sub systems. In the project a 100 W DMFC compact system as battery extender was successfully developed and operated. The reduction of the number of components and the simplification of the system led to a high reduction in price, weight and volume. The feasibility of a micro-DMFC system was evaluated which enables a minimised system periphery due to an improved System Architecture. For this, alternative materials and functional components were developed and investigated leading to new membranes with reduced water and methanol permeation allowing a low air stoich operation and higher system efficiency. Gas diffusion layers of various compositions were tested and optimised materials were selected. New sealing materials with good methanol stability and optimized processibility in commercial production Processes were developed and the MEA preparation was adapted to the new materials. The use of a simple, cost-effective way of stack production was demonstrated for DMFC use. Using this new components and materials, coupled with the enhanced subsystem architectures and enhanced operation strategies, the build up and start-up of an improved micro DMFC System was achieved. The technical feasibility of the Results was investigated in the real application. The micro DMFC System was used as a battery range extender in a 6m solar boat. The DMFC fuel cell system serves as a basis for an efficient, compact and cost effective alternative for battery- or battery-extender systems and can fulfil a broad variety of applications

BZ-BattExt – DMFC as Battery-Extender in solar-boat application

For special applications Direct Methanol Fuel Cells (DMFC) are close to commercial application or already commercialized today. However for the step from laboratory to a broader market of fuel cells, a significant cost reduction, as well as an improvement in life time and power density of the systems is needed. These items were the focus of the project BZ-BattExt, to be reached by new knowledge in alternative materials, operation strategies as also the realisation of enhanced sub systems. This project is funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research in the program of Micro fuel cells. In the project the feasibility of a micro-DMFC system is evaluated which enables a minimised system periphery due to an improved system architecture. For this, alternative materials and functional components were developed and investigated. New membranes with reduced water and methanol permeation allow operation at low air stoichiometry and favourable system efficiency. Gas diffusion layers of various compositions were tested and optimised material was selected. New sealing materials with good methanol stability and optimized processibility in commercial production process were developed. MEA preparation was adapted to the new materials. The use of a simple, cost-effective way of stack production was demonstrated for DMFC use. The investigation and construction of enhanced subsystems and operation strategies, which enable and optimise the use of new components and materials, as also the realisation of the micro-DMFC system is a focus of the project. The technical feasibility of the results is investigated in the application, which means it is tested as battery extender of a solar boat. The DMFC fuel cell system serves as a basis for an efficient, compact and cost effective alternative for battery- or battery-extender systems and can fulfil a broad variety of applications

Fuel Cell System for Solar Boat Battery-Extender - BZ-BattExt -

For special applications Direct Methanol Fuel Cells (DMFC) are close to commercial application or already commercialized today. However for the step from laboratory to a broader market of fuel cells, significant cost reduction, as also an improvement in life time and power density of the systems is needed. These items were the focus of the project BZ-BattExt, to be reached by new knowledge in alternative materials, operation strategies as also the realisation of enhanced sub systems. This project is funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research in the program of Micro fuel cells. In the project the feasibility of a micro-DMFC-system is evaluated which enables a minimised system periphery due to an improved system architecture. For this, alternative materials and functional components were developed and investigated. New membranes with reduced water and methanol permeation allow operation at low air stoichiometry, favourable for system efficiency. Gas diffusion layers of various compositions were tested and optimised material selected. New sealing materials with good methanol stability and optimized processibility in commercial production process were developed. MEA preparation was adapted to the new materials. The use of a simple, cost-effective way of stack production was demonstrated for DMFC use. The investigation and construction of enhanced subsystems and operation strategies, which enable and optimise the use of new components and materials, as also the realisation of the micro-DMFC-system is a focus of the project. The technical feasibility of the results is investigated application oriented, which means it is tested as battery extender of a solar boat. The fuel cell system serves as a basis for an efficient, compact and cost effective micro-DMFC-System as alternative for battery- or battery-extender systems which covers a broad variety of applications