|
South Africa, as the world's leading producer of platinum (85% of known world reserves), is potentially in a strategic position to take advantage of new opportunities in the fuel cells domain.
Alternative to traditional energy
Focus areas
Test systems and equipment
Collaboration
Alternative to traditional energy
Fuel cells generate electric power from an electrochemical process using fuels such as hydrogen or methanol. Compared with batteries, fuel cells typically have a higher energy density and a lower weight. In addition, fuel cells are environment-friendly (especially if the fuel is taken from a renewable resource) and can be recharged instantly. Fuel cells are being used in prototype applications to power vehicles, cellular telephones, homes, commercial properties, laptops, household appliances and industrial machinery.
Platinum-mediated reactions are at the core of fuel cell technologies. It is, for example used in the central electro-catalyst layer of proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cells. This type is used in automobiles and stationary applications. According to the International Platinum Association, no other material has been shown to be as effective as platinum in PEM fuel cells. Much research, however, is currently directed towards decreasing this dependency on platinum.
Focus areas
Current focus areas of the fuel cell research group at the CSIR are:
- Development of the anode and cathode electro-catalysts for direct alcohol fuel cells (DAFC) and screening of the electro-catalysts using electrochemical methods (such as cyclic voltammetry, chronoamperometry);
- Structural characterization of the selected electro-catalyst (composition, particle size and surface area);
- Investigating methods of preparing membrane electrode assembly (MEA) and examining the structural properties and impedance studies;
- Development of membranes and catalysts for alkaline DAFC application;
- Hybrid Micro Fuel cell for powering of portable electronics (0W -10W);
- Testing of a prototype stack
Test systems and equipment
- FuelCon Evaluator C050 Fuel Cell (FC) Test Rig: a partially automated analytical test stand for cell testing including humidification, electronic control of reactant flow, temperature and pressure, nitrogen purge and electronic load management. It can be used for single cells and stack testing for H2FC and DMFC.
- Autolab Potentiostat 302 with FRA (frequency response analyzer): instrument for electrochemical research and voltammetric analyses.
- 663 VA Stand for Autolab, with complete cables, electrodes and IME interface card
- Hot Press
- Unit cells for hydrogen and alcohol fuel cells
Collaboration
Fuel cell research is a multi-disciplinary field and requires expertise in chemistry, engineering and material science, all of which are available in the CSIR, as well as capabilities found at other institutes. Modelling expertise, membrane technology and catalysis require cooperation with respectively the Universities of Limpopo, Stellenbosch and North-West, and Witwatersrand, while electrochemical characterisation and energy scenario modelling require collaboration with the Universities of Pretoria and Cape Town.
Publications
Primary contact
Dr Sibbele Hietkamp
CSIR
shietkam@csir.co.za
|
