Why are hydrogen fuel cells more efficient than combustion?

Fuel cells are more efficient than combustion engines as they operate at a higher thermodynamic efficiency. Combustion engines must first convert their fuel into heat, then into mechanical energy, and finally into electricity. Fuel cells skip those intermediary steps.

Why are hydrogen fuel cells better?

Hydrogen fuel cells are cleaner and more efficient than traditional combustion-based engines and power plants. Hydrogen and fuel cells can also be used in mobile applications to power vehicles and mobile power packs. The benefits of fuel cells are: Reduced greenhouse gas emissions.

How is a hydrogen fuel cell different from using hydrogen gas for a combustion engine?

In a fuel cell vehicle, the hydrogen fuel is combined with oxygen. While the combustion in a hydrogen- or gasoline-powered engine is converted into mechanical energy, in a fuel cell vehicle, the chemical energy from the hydrogen and oxygen is converted into electrical energy.

What is the advantage of hydrogen as a fuel to IC engines?

Hydrogen has a wide flammability range in comparison with all other fuels. As a result, hydrogen can be combusted in an internal combustion engine over a wide range of fuel-air mix- tures. A significant advantage of this is that hydrogen can run on a lean mixture.

Can hydrogen fuel an internal combustion engine?

Hydrogen has a wide flammability range in comparison with other fuels. As a result, it can be combusted in an internal combustion engine over a wide range of fuel-air mixtures. Also, the combustion temperature is usually lower, which reduces the amount of pollutants (nitrogen oxides.) emitted through the exhaust.

Why is hydrogen used in fuel cells?

Hydrogen can be used in fuel cells to generate power using a chemical reaction rather than combustion, producing only water and heat as byproducts. Find educational resources about hydrogen (H2) and fuel cell technologies.

What are the advantages and disadvantages of hydrogen as an IC engine?

Easy production – Hydrogen can produce by many chemical processes including simple electrolysis of water. Reduce the dependency on fossil fuel. Physical delay of fuel is almost zero. Good load response.

Why don’t we just run internal combustion engines on hydrogen?

Hydrogen is a tempting alternative fuel. When burned correctly, its only emission is water vapor. When you combust hydrogen, you get other emissions besides water vapor. Mainly, you get NOx, the toxic emission at the heart of the Volkswagen diesel emissions cheating scandal.