Fuel Cells

Researchers develop method for efficient fuel-molecule sieving using graphene

Researchers from Japan's University of Tsukuba, Nagoya University, Osaka University and Germany's Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research have developed a graphene-based method that can prevent the crossover of large fuel molecules and suppress the degradation of electrodes in advanced fuel cell technology using methanol or formic acid.

The successful sieving of the fuel molecules is achieved via selective proton transfers due to steric hindrance on holey graphene sheets that have chemical functionalization and act as proton-exchange membranes.

Read the full story Posted: Sep 24,2023

Haydale to take part in project to develop fuel cell hydrogen electric vehicles

Haydale has announced that it will be a key contributor to Viritech's development of fuel cell hydrogen electric vehicles (FCHEVs).

Viritech, a developer of high-performance hydrogen powertrain solutions for the automotive industry, has secured a major role in Ford Motor Company's three-year hydrogen fuel cell E-Transit trial and Haydale will lead the development of new functionalized materials and resins for Type V pressure vessels to support Viritech's proprietary integrated mounting system Graph-Pro™.

Read the full story Posted: May 29,2023

Haydale and Viritech to extend cooperation on hydrogen pressure vessels

Haydale recently announced an extension of its cooperation with Viritech, a developer of high-performance hydrogen powertrain solutions for the automotive industry. The two companies will work together on solutions for hydrogen pressure vessels, initially focusing on commercial vehicles.

In focusing on Type V, linerless pressure vessels, Viritech and Haydale are looking to develop 'the world’s most efficient vehicle storage system for gaseous hydrogen'. This technology could have wide application, including to the automotive, aerospace, and marine industries, with immediate application in the emerging market for fuel cell vans.

Read the full story Posted: Apr 29,2023

Researchers use graphene electrodes to split water molecules

An international team of scientists, led by Dr. Marcelo Lozada-Hidalgo based at the National Graphene Institute (NGI), used graphene as an electrode to measure both the electrical force applied on water molecules and the rate at which these break in response to such force. The researchers found that water breaks exponentially faster in response to stronger electrical forces.

The researchers believe that this fundamental understanding of interfacial water could be used to design better catalysts to generate hydrogen fuel from water. Dr Marcelo Lozada-Hidalgo said: “We hope that the insights from this work will be of use to various communities, including physics, catalysis, and interfacial science and that it can help design better catalysts for green hydrogen production”.

Read the full story Posted: Oct 07,2022

Iodine-doped graphene oxide could be an efficient electrocatalyst for fuel cells

Researchers from the National Institute for Cryogenics and Isotopic Technologies ICSI-Rm in Romania have applied microwave processes to iodine doping and reduction of graphene oxide, to produce functionalized fuel cell organic reduction reaction electrocatalysts. The team chose to utilize microwave-assisted processes because of their many benefits, like reduced energy, time, and cost demands.

The process developed by the team relies on a faster, simpler, more economical, and efficient protocol under atmospheric pressure conditions. Under mild conditions, the microwave-assisted process highlighted in the research synthesizes a canvas-like iodine/reduced graphene oxide structure from graphene oxide. Thus, a low-cost, efficient alternative to platinum-based catalysts has been developed.

Read the full story Posted: Sep 08,2022

Researchers use graphene to enhance hybrid redox flow cells

Researchers from the Warwick Manufacturing Group (WMG) at the University of Warwick, together with members from the Imperial College London, have enhanced three hybrid flow cells with the use of nitrogen doped graphene - graphene sheets exposed to nitrogen plasma - using a binder-free electrophoresis (EPD) technique.

Graphene improves fuel cells and flow batteries imageThe EPD process schematic. Image from article

The new technique could potentially promote wider acceptance and renewable energy sources - such as hydro and solar power - currently limited by intermittency problems that prevent mass adoption of these sources into larger, national-scale power grids. One idea explored in working around this limitation is the use of long-duration battery technologies, like redox flow batteries. However, despite its longevity and performance, current costs have become significant tradeoff considerations and also hampers widespread adoption.

Read the full story Posted: Jan 19,2021

Researchers come up with a promising new design for graphene-enhanced fuel cells

Researchers at University College London, Queen Mary University of London and Humboldt Universität zu Berlin have suggested a design for a hydrogen fuel cell, with graphene as a key component. The new research promises to address some of the roadblocks that have thus far hindered the development of this clean, non-toxic, renewable technology, thus opening up hydrogen fuel cells as a potential clean-energy breakthrough.

At the moment the US Department of Energy estimates that the cost of energy generated by hydrogen fuel cells is around $61 per kilowatt. The ultimate aim is to get this down to $30 per kilowatt. The scaling up in the production of graphene-coated nanoparticles suggested in the paper could help significantly in this quest. The team’s findings could also extend beyond the field of fuel cells, lending itself to some exciting technological applications.

Read the full story Posted: Jul 26,2020

A new graphene-carbon nanotubes hybrid catalyst could help clean energy revolution

Researchers at Aalto University, collaborating with researchers at CNRS France, have developed a graphene-carbon nanotube catalyst which gives better control over important chemical reactions for producing green technology and clean energy.

The oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER) are the most important electrochemical reactions that limit the efficiencies of hydrogen fuel cells (for powering vehicles and power generation), water electrolyzers (for clean hydrogen production), and high-capacity metal-air batteries. The team has developed a new catalyst that reportedly drives these reactions more efficiently than other bifunctional catalysts currently available. The researchers also found that the electrocatalytic activity of their new catalyst can be significantly altered depending on choice of the material on which the catalyst was deposited.

Read the full story Posted: Mar 23,2020

The UK establishes a Graphene Innovation Group, explains how graphene assists business goals

Following a Global Business innovation Programme initiated in 2019, and a collaborative visit to the US, the UK established a new Graphene Innovation Group (UK-GIG) that puts together 15 specialists from UK companies that together share many years of experience in graphene and expertise across the entire value chain.

UK-GIG group photo, Boston

Scott Storey, a Business Innovation Advisor at Inventya and the lead coordinator at the UK-GIG, explains more about the group - "We can take an everyday industrial challenge, apply our combined graphene knowledge, engineer and manufacture an effective solution, and take that solution to national and international markets. UK-GIG is now an established cohort of 15 UK-based graphene companies, ranging from early stage through to established businesses. The UK-GIG companies are fully aware of the huge potential for graphene technology to improve materials or be used in novel ways across multiple sectors. They are seeking collaboration opportunities where they can combine their expertise to do what they do best - solve problems, design graphene applications, and help commercialize an increasingly exciting field. They aim to make the UK the best place on earth to be grafting in graphene!"

We have reached out to some of the GIG members, to find out how has graphene effected their business and products, and the effects of graphene on their materials or devices.

Read the full story Posted: Mar 19,2020

G6 Materials and Gilman Industries start work on graphene-based green energy project

G6 Materials Corp. (formerly known as "Graphene 3D Lab) has announced the start of a new green-energy focused collaboration with Gilman Industries, a company focused on commercializing its hydrogen-producing technology. The objective of the project is to develop a new generation of Evolve, a proprietary hydrogen generator that produces hydrogen by splitting water with an electric current.

During the course of this project, G6 will develop a robust graphene-based material for electrodes within the hydrogen generator. Introducing a resilient graphene-based material has the potential to deliver chemical stability that could allow the generator to operate with seawater, which if successful, would drastically expand the range of potential applications.

Read the full story Posted: Feb 13,2020