Catalysts for Butane Reforming in Zirconia Fuel Cells

The ability of f ue l cells to use hydrocarbon fuels efficiently is important i f they are to compete with battery power. Solid oxide fue l cells, particularly zirconia fuel cell devices, are generally well suited to utilise a variety of fuels. They are commercially attractive, especially in remote locations where battery supply and muintenunce costs are prohibitive but where f w l, particularly butane, is readily available. Butane can be safely stored at high energy density and is thus a useful fwl for zirconia fuel cells in remote areas. Partial oxidation would be the preferred route to reform butane, but this requires a suitable catalyst. Ruthenium i s a n excellent partial oxidation catalyst, giving nearly total reformation of butane and producing high levels of hydrogen. However, prob-lems such as carbon deposition and catalyst optimisation need to be addressed. Here, work with a zirconia fuel cell successfully fuelled by butane and using a ruthenium catalyst under controlled reaction conditions is discussed. Zirconia fuel cell devices can be small-scale and portable. They can generally use a variet