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Projects: Projects for Investigator
Reference Number EP/F028083/1
Title FEASIBILITY STUDY OF UREA FUEL CELL
Status Completed
Energy Categories Hydrogen and Fuel Cells(Fuel Cells) 100%;
Research Types Basic and strategic applied research 100%
Science and Technology Fields PHYSICAL SCIENCES AND MATHEMATICS (Chemistry) 100%
UKERC Cross Cutting Characterisation Not Cross-cutting 100%
Principal Investigator Dr S (Shanwen ) Tao
No email address given
Chemical and Process Engineering
University of Strathclyde
Award Type Standard
Funding Source EPSRC
Start Date 01 October 2007
End Date 30 September 2008
Duration 12 months
Total Grant Value £87,874
Industrial Sectors Energy; Chemicals
Region Scotland
Programme Energy Research Capacity
 
Investigators Principal Investigator Dr S (Shanwen ) Tao , Chemical and Process Engineering, University of Strathclyde (99.999%)
  Other Investigator Professor J Irvine , Chemistry, University of St Andrews (0.001%)
Web Site
Objectives
Abstract Hydrogen is the most abundant element in the universe, a very clean energy source and the most efficient fuel for fuel cells (FC) and can be produced from a variety of resources / coal, natural gas, biomass and water. At the moment, about 95% of the hydrogen comes from reforming natural gas; the remainder from water electrolysis, using electricity generated mainly by burning fossil fuels. Development of a clean and sustainable energy future based on a hydrogen economy could solve pollutionproblems and secure needs for abundant and affordable energy. However, hydrogen storage remains a major challenge for hydrogen economy. Hydrogen may be indirectly stored in light chemicals such as ammonia, methane, methanol etc. Hydrogen from reforming of natural gas may be further used to produce ammonia fertiliser. Cheap ammonia fertilizers are potential energy vectors as well. Adblue, a urea solution developed by Europe's AdBlue urea-SCR project is available across Europe. AdBlue is the major target fuel for the proposed ammonia fuel cells to power electric vehicles in the future. Already there are more than 200 locations in the UK holding stocks of GreenChem AdBlue. The current price for AdBlue is 45p per liter. The price may further drop on mass-production. The current price of fertiliser urea is 185/ton in UK although purer urea is required for fuel cell.This application is to study the feasibility to use ammonia fertilisers particular urea as an alternative energy vector. Whilst mature technologies to convert urea to ammonia exist, there is no technology available to use urea, such as AdBlue, to power electric vehicles. The major target is to demonstrate intermediate temperature fuel cells directly fuelled with ammonia (or indirectly from urea) to power electric vehicles for transport application in the future. CO2 for production of ammonia fertilisers may be collected and stored through CO2 sequestration technologies. Therefore urea fuel cell is an important complementary technology for carbon abatement. The as-developed fuel cells may potentially be fuelled with hydrogen and methanol as well. It is also a biofuel related technology if biofuel is used for the as-developed fuel cells
Publications (none)
Final Report (none)
Added to Database 13/08/07