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Home / Washington Business - July/August 2003 / How do hydrogen fuel cells work? |
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How do hydrogen fuel cells work? |
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Written On: July/August 2003 |
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Hydrogen fuel cells create electricity by an electrochemical process, and operate very similar to a battery. However, unlike batteries, fuel cells never run out.
A single fuel cell consists of an electrolyte membrane that rests between two electrodes (an anode and a cathode). Hydrogen is fed to the anode where a catalyst separates hydrogen’s negatively charged electrons from positively charged ions (protons). To be used as electrical energy, electrons flow out of the cell; then, hydrogen ions move through the electrolyte to the cathode electrode where they combine with oxygen and the electrons to produce water. The electrons from the anode side of the cell travel around it via an electrical circuit to reach the other side of the cell. This movement of electrons is an electrical current.
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