Pbi Fuel Cells for Hydrocarbon Conversion: Concepts and Applications

As natural resources such as hydrocarbons have become fast depleting and the environmental constraints on industry grow tighter, it is imperative to search for an environmentally friendly and cost effective alternative to substitute for the traditional power production methods. One of the envisaged technologies is fuel cells. In particular, polymer exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFC) has been tipped as a promising energy source for automobile applications, laptops, hand phones etc., due to its low operating temperature as well as high energy density. Equally interesting is the prospect of using this technology in chemical industries. This book, therefore, presents significant discoveries related to the application of phosphoric acid-doped polybenzimidazole (PBI) membrane fuel cells for converting hydrocarbon into electricity. The concepts/ theories behind this innovative application is duly explained while analyses of results should help shed some light on this relatively new area.