(June 30,
2012) Materials
scientists demonstrate first SOFC capable of battery-like storage
Imagine a kerosene lamp that continued to shine after
the fuel was spent, or an electric stove that could remain hot during a power
outage.
Materials
scientists at Harvard have demonstrated an equivalent feat in clean energy
generation with a solid-oxide fuel cell (SOFC) that converts hydrogen into
electricity but can also store electrochemical energy like a battery. This fuel
cell can continue to produce power for a short time after its fuel has run out.
"This thin-film SOFC takes advantage of recent advances
in low-temperature operation to incorporate a new and more versatile
material," explains principal investigator Shriram Ramanathan, Associate
Professor of Materials Science at the Harvard School of Engineering and Applied
Sciences (SEAS). "Vanadium oxide (VOx) at the anode behaves as a
multifunctional material, allowing the fuel cell to both generate and store
energy."