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New ‘needle in a haystack’ discovery unlocks fuel cell potential
Mar 18, 2020
What
do you do when a technology with massive potential to drive down emissions gets stuck in the mud because of a few issues? Do you walk away leaving it dead in the water? Or do you spend years working through the problem looking for a breakthrough?
Unlocking potential
Good news for everyone that scientists from Aberdeen University opted for the latter. After several years of research, they’ve made the ‘needle in a haystack’ discovery that can revolutionise the technology, commercialise fuel cells and significantly reduce emissions.
According to the new research paper, scientists have discovered a new family of chemical compounds. Collectively they’re known as hexagonal perovskites. But don’t let their less-than-catchy name fool you – scientists say they could unlock the potential of ceramic fuel cells.
Powerful and affordable
Ceramic fuel cells are highly efficient devices that convert chemical energy into electrical energy. They have a broad range of applications – from powering homes to cars – and if powered by hydrogen, they have very low emissions. This makes them a clean alternative to fossil fuels. Another advantage is their ability to use hydrocarbon fuels such as methane. Or in other words, they can bridge the gap to a low carbon world. So far so good. The problem was always with their operating temperature.
Too hot to handle
Up and until now ceramic fuel cells operate at really high temperatures of above 800°C. As a result, they have a short lifespan and use expensive components. Not so great for manufacturing and operating costs. However, the recent breakthrough means scientists have now found a way for ceramic fuel cells to operate at much lower temperatures.
The workaround comes in the form of a dual proton and oxide ion conductor that will operate successfully at around 500°C – a reduction of around 300°C that solves pre-existing problems. Since lowering the working temperature is essential for widespread use, the future for this technology looks more promising. In the next five to ten years we may well see its role in developing cleaner and more efficient means of converting energy sources increase significantly.
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Balancing planet and profit during unprecedented market volatility
Wholesale energy prices have experienced unprecedented levels of volatility since the end of summer 2021, with both day ahead/spot and future contracts surging to all-time highs. In the last couple of months, prices have decreased but still remain high compared to a year ago. This period of high energy prices is expected to continue for the foreseeable future (see next section). Energy prices have surged for a number of reasons: A global increase in gas demand following the ease or end of Covid-related restrictions throughout 2021. After the pandemic, economies across the world started to recover. Asian countries like China saw their imports of Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) increase. This resulted in lower LNG shipments to the UK and Europe. On the supply side, the Covid-19 lockdowns pushed some maintenance work from 2020 into 2021 at a time when demand was recovering. In 2021, gas production hit a record low of 363TWh, 47TWh below the previous record low in 2013. Low production was the result of an extensive summer maintenance schedule which saw shutdowns at several major terminals, as well as the Forties Pipeline System which serves a significant proportion of UK gas and oil production. A lack of wind in the summer resulted in higher demand for conventional power. European gas storage in 2021 and Q1’22 remained far below previous years and it’s unclear how these are going to be replenished in the summer given the concerns around supply including the potential suspension of Russian gas flows due to sanctions. The 1,234km offshore Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, which was designed to double the flow of gas between Russia and Germany (and by extension the rest of Europe) has been abandoned following the invasion of Ukraine. Gas storage in the UK is extremely minimal with capacity at less than 2% of the UK’s annual demand, compared with 22% for other European countries. Whilst the UK is not heavily reliant on gas coming from Russia, it sources almost half it’s gas supply from Europe. Hence, wholesale gas and power prices in the UK are now subject to knock-on-effects from the conflict in Ukraine.
Amidst rising energy costs, digitalisation, growing pressure from stakeholders and increasing regulation, organisations may struggle to define their pathway to a low-carbon future. What can you do to protect your business’ net zero plans from the challenges of volatility? Disruption and volatility are putting organisations under pressure. Digitalisation and new technology developments continue to challenge existing business models. Its increasing dependence on energy and encouraging businesses to drive change to secure competitive advantage. And as customers, employees and shareholders look to engage with companies who understand the importance of decarbonisation, pressure is mounting to prioritise sustainability.