A fuel cell assembly in combination with an electrochemical battery, having an electrical connection therebetween, the electrical connection including a current blocking element to prevent current stored in the battery from flowing into the fuel cell assembly and wherein the electrical connection is absent of a current control component for current generated by the fuel cell assembly flowing to the battery.

A fuel cell assembly comprising at least two fuel cells, each fuel cell in the fuel cell assembly having an anode and a cathode to provide for electrical interconnections with other fuel cells of the assembly or assembly output terminals wherein the electrical interconnections between a plurality of the fuel cells of the fuel cell assembly are configurable such that said plurality of fuel cells or a subset thereof are connectable without changing the spatial relationship between the fuel cells in at least two of; i) in series with one another; ii) in parallel with one another; or iii) disconnected from the assembly.

A fuel cell system is disclosed that comprises a fuel cell unit operable to store at least one of water and hydrogen. At least one membrane is provided at one or more ends of the fuel cell unit. The membrane is operable to enable a flow of oxygen through the at least a portion of fuel cell unit. Further, the membrane is further operable to prevent water from flowing through at least a portion of the fuel cell. Moreover, an electrical source in operative engagement with the fuel cell unit. The fuel cell operates in a first mode to collect the hydrogen when receiving voltage from the electrical source, and further the fuel cell operates in a second mode to generate electricity using the hydrogen. The fuel cell unit is preferably stackable via a combination of conductible studs and receptacles.

The invention relates to a method (100) for converting and/or storing electric energy E obtained from mechanical energy M in a vehicle comprising a motor (1), in particular a motor vehicle. In the method, a) mechanical energy M obtained when braking and/or during an overrun operation of the vehicle is converted into electric energy E in a first step using a generator (2), b) the electric energy is stored in an intermediate energy store (3) in a second step, c) the stored electric energy E is discharged to an electrolysis module (4) in a third step, d) the module converts the electric energy E into chemical energy C in a fourth step at least by splitting water (H.sub.2O) into hydrogen (H.sub.2) and oxygen (O2), and e) the chemical energy is conducted into a gas tank (5) of the vehicle for temporary storage and/or is supplied to the motor (1) and/or a fuel cell (10) of the vehicle in a fifth step.

A hybrid system for producing electricity by a metal-air cell and for utilizing hydrogen released during the operation of the metal-air cell for producing energy in the form of electricity, mechanical power or heat energy. The hybrid electric energy system includes at least one metal-air cell and at least one hydrogen conversion unit.

A photocatalytic power generation system including a solar housing, a photoanode, an electrolyte membrane, a cathode, an oxygen diffusion membrane, and an external power generation circuit. The photoanode and the cathode are each positioned within the solar housing and electrically coupled to the external power generation circuit. The electrolyte membrane is positioned between and electrochemically engaged with the photoanode and the cathode forming a photocatalytic cell. The solar housing comprises a closed-loop water chamber having an anode side flow channel, a cathode side flow channel, a recombined water channel, and an oxygen diffusion membrane. Further, the oxygen diffusion membrane is positioned and configured to inhibit recombined water generated at the cathode from flowing from the cathode side to the anode side along the oxygen transport channel and permit recombined water generated at the cathode from flowing from the cathode side to the anode side along the recombined water channel.

An illustrative example fuel cell power plant includes a cell stack assembly having a plurality of fuel cells configured to generate electricity based on an electrochemical reaction. The power plant includes a capacitor, a plurality of inverters, and at least one controller that is configured to control the plurality of inverters in a first mode and a second mode. The first mode includes the cell stack assembly associated with at least one of the inverters. A cell stack assembly and the associated inverter provide real power to a load external to the fuel cell power plant in the first mode. The second mode includes at least a second one of the inverters associated with the capacitor. The capacitor and the second one of the inverters selectively provide reactive power to or receive reactive power from a grid external to the fuel cell power plant in the second mode.

The present invention provides an electrolyte membrane for a redox flow battery, comprising a perfluorocarbon polymer having an ion-exchange group, wherein the perfluorocarbon polymer has equivalent weight EW of the ion-exchange group of 600 g/eq or more and 2000 g/eq or less, a craze area ratio of the electrolyte membrane is 1.5% or less, and a relative dimension of the electrolyte membrane in at least one of a X direction and a Y direction is 80% or more and less than 100% in the following relative dimension by dipping in 2 M aqueous sulfuric acid solution.

A fuel cell energy circulative utilization system includes an input energy, a first electric cell having an electricity output terminal and an energy output terminal, a second electric cell having an electricity input terminal, an energy input terminal, and an energy output terminal, and an energy circulation control device connected among the first and second electric cells and the input energy. The input energy includes an energy source containing hydrocarbons or hydrogen and connected to an energy input port of the first electric cell in order to make the first electric cell outputs electricity through the electricity output terminal and energy products of thermal energy and water through the energy output terminal. The electricity output terminal and the energy output terminal for thermal energy and water of the first electric cell are respectively connected to the electricity input terminal and the energy input terminal of the second electric cell, in order to make the second electric cell to at least output a hydrogen source through the energy output terminal thereof to the energy circulation control device, so that the energy circulation control device controls circulation of hydrogen for feeding to the energy input terminal of the first electric cell for reuse. The energy circulation control device is also operable to switch operations of the first and second electric cells between working modes of solid oxide electrolysis cell and solid oxide fuel cell.

Provided are electrochemical cells for hydrogen production and methods for hydrogen production. The electrochemical cell and methods use a mediator that may have a reversible redox potential lying outside the onset of the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) and the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). Also, provided are systems for generating hydrogen and water from oxygen and generating water from oxygen and hydrogen.