Fuel cells lose performance over time because the chemical reactions inside them slowly degrade the materials they are made from. This project will watch those reactions happen in real time, at the atomic level, using advanced analytical techniques. The problem is that engineers currently design fuel cells without fully understanding how the materials break down during operation. The same issue affects dual-phase membranes used to capture CO₂ from power plant exhaust. Without knowing exactly what chemical changes occur at the interfaces between materials, researchers cannot choose better materials or design systems that last longer. If this work succeeds, manufacturers will be able to select materials that resist degradation, extending the lifespan of fuel cells and CO₂ separation membranes. That could make zero-emission energy generation and carbon capture more practical for real-world power grids. The techniques developed here will also help scientists studying corrosion barriers and other electrochemical systems. This is primarily fundamental science—understanding the chemistry inside working devices rather than building a prototype. But that understanding is the missing piece that currently blocks these technologies from reaching the market.
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Fuel cells have been promoted as a pollution free alternative for energy generation. However, there are several constraints, based around the materials used, which have limited the implementation of this technology. This proposal provides the understanding of the chemical processes occurring in the materials and at the interfaces between the materials which drive the technology and the changes this chemistry causes to the materials. This will enable the design of fuel cell systems and choice of materials to mitigate these changes which reduce performance. The electro-chemical processes which occur in fuel cells (both high and low temperature systems) are not unique to this technology and to demonstrate the efficacy of the study across all temperature ranges (from room temperature to 1200oC) we will also look at the separation of CO2 using dual phase membranes. While still an emerging technology, these membranes encounter similar problems to fuel cells and are extremely exciting as potential short term solutions for existing energy generation systems where CO2 is generated. Several extremely powerful, cutting edge, analytical techniques are available which when applied in real time will allow the observation of the chemistry at atomic level. As a consequence the changes caused by operation of the system can be identified and explained. This project couples the application of existing state-of-the-art techniques with the development of these techniques where necessary to allow researchers to follow the changes as the chemical transformation of fuels into power, or CO2 separation, occur. The potential benefit of this work is that the route to market for all three technologies will be enhanced by a deeper understanding of the chemistry. Hence, the environmental potential of the adoption of these systems will be realised. In addition, the ability to follow processes within working systems will be of great interest to the scientific community working in parallel disciplines such as the design of barriers to prevent corrosion.
Daniel Brett (Co-Investigator)Ian Metcalfe (Co-Investigator)Paul Shearing (Co-Investigator)Philip A Martin (Co-Investigator)Sarah Haigh (Co-Investigator)Stuart Holmes (Principal Investigator)
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