**1.5. Types of fuel cell**

Fuel cells are broadly classified into the following types:

**•** Alkaline fuel cell (AFM)


carbon cloth for a better reaction. The platinum catalyzes the conversion of hydrogen molecule of the fuel into electrons and protons at the anode side. Moreover, at the cathode side, it helps to split oxygen molecule into two atoms and then combines with the electrons and protons from hydrogen to produce water. Platinum catalyst is extremely sensitive to CO poisoning

"Gas Diffusion Layers (GDL)" is responsible for uniform distribution of the reactants from the bipolar plates into the active catalyst sites. It helps in membrane humidification[8]. It helps in

The amount of power produced by a fuel cell is dependent on several factors, such as the size, type, operating temperature, and pressure of the gas supplied into the cell. However, a single fuel cell produces enough electricity for only the smallest applications. Therefore, to realize sufficient operational power output, individual fuel cells are typically combined in series to form fuel cell stack[4,5,9]. A typical fuel cell stack may consist of hundreds of fuel cells.

from the fuel gas derived from hydrocarbon fuel[7].

effective current assemblage and water-heat removal as well.

**Figure 2.** Showing components of fuel cell stack (www.tech-etch.com)

Fuel cells are broadly classified into the following types:

**1.5. Types of fuel cell**

**•** Alkaline fuel cell (AFM)

*1.3.3. Gas diffusion layers*

234 Electrodeposition of Composite Materials

**1.4. Fuel cell stack**


**Figure 3.** Showing different types of fuel cells (www.fuelcells.org)
