A fuel cell can be viewed, in a very simplistic way, as a continuous flow battery. Instead of depleting the charge in the battery with time there is a continuous inflow of charge to the system in terms of fresh chemicals such as Hydrogen, and the depleted chemicals exit the system. There are byproducts of this process usually in the form of heat and exhaust, quite similar to a conventional combustion system. The main advantage of fuel cell is their ability to operate at higher efficiencies and more environmentally friendly, a goal that is worth pursuing.

At I3E we have many years of experience working in the fuel cell area, including balance of plant and fuel reforming when it comes to using more complex fuels such as Natural Gas or even Gasoline and Diesel.

The fuel reforming process can be very complicated and involve several catalytic reactors operating at different well designed temperatures to maximize system efficiency while minimizing the effluent of undesirable byproducts. When engaging in complex hydrocarbon fuels with fuel cells, the fuel reforming process needs to take the forefront attention as it quickly becomes the limiting factor of success of the entire project if neglected. Additional factors are Sulphur levels and other fuel contaminants that might be poisonous to the fuel cell or parts of the system. I3E has significant experience and gained hard learned lessons in these problem areas.

Principle