History of fuel cell development at a glance

The history of fuel cells dates back to 1839 when a Welsh judge and physical scientist, Sir William Grove, conducted the first known demonstration of the fuel cell by reversing a water electrolysis reaction. Below is a quick summary of the landmarks in the history of fuel cell technologies:

1839 – Demonstration of the first fuel cell (called “gas voltaic battery” at the time) by William Grove

Sketch of Grove's original fuel cell (with four cells in series and a water electrolyzer as the load). Fuel cell technology remained just as a scientific curiosity without much success in practical applications for almost a century after this invention.

1889 – Coining of the term “fuel cell” by Ludwig Mond and his assistant Carl Langer who attempted to use air and coal gas (also referred to as “fuel gas”) to generate electricity

1894 – Theoretical explanation of the operation of fuel cells and manifestation of the advantages of producing electricity directly via fuel cells instead of conventional steam engines by Wilhelm Ostwald

1899 – Demonstration of the yttria-stabilized zirconia (YSZ) solid-state ionic conductor by Walther Nernst, which is still used as the electrolyte of solid oxide fuel cells (SOFCs)

1921 – Development of the first molten carbonate fuel cell (MCFC) by Emil Baur of Switzerland

1932 – Research on alkali electrolyte fuel cells (AFCs) started by Francis T. Bacon

Late 1930s – Experimentation with solid oxide electrolytes using materials such as zirconium, lanthanum and yttrium by Emil Baur and H. Peris

1955 – Invention of the polymer electrolyte fuel cell (PEFC) by William Grub at General Electric

1960 – Successful operation of an MCFC continuously for 6 months reported by Dutch scientists G. H. J. Broers and J. A. A. Ketelaar

1961 – New promise in phosphoric acid electrolytes revealed by G. V. Elmore and H. A. Tanner of Kettering Foundation (USA) leading to the development of phosphoric acid fuel cells (PAFCs)

1962 – Demonstration of the first practical SOFC by the scientists at Westinghouse Electric Corporation (now Siemens Westinghouse)

1965 – First commercial use of PEFCs in NASA’s Gemini space program

1966 – First application of AFCs, manufactured by Pratt and Whitney based on Bacon’s patents, in NASA’s Apollo space program

1966 – First hydrogen fuel cell car, Electrovan, built by the General Motors by employing PEFCs supplied by the Union Carbide

1970s – Invention of the electrochemical vapor decomposition (EVD) process by Arnold Isenberg at Westinghouse thereby opening the door to the development of thin film electrolytes for SOFCs

1983 – PAFC pilot plant of 4.8 MW built in New York City by UTC Power

Mid 1980s – Development of electrode assembly techniques in PEFCs resulting in reduced catalyst loading at Los Alamos National Laboratory

1990 – Invention of the direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC), a sub-category of PEFCs, by Surya Prakash and George A. Olah of the University of Southern California’s Loker Hydrocarbon Research Institute

1993 – Demonstration of fuel cell-powered buses by Ballard Power Systems

1993 – Demonstration of the first passenger car running on PEFCs by Energy Partners

1996-97 – Operation of a 2 MW MCFC demonstration plant in Santa Clara, California by Energy Research Corp. (now Fuel Cell Energy Inc.)

2000 – Proof-of-concept demonstration of the first SOFC/gas turbine hybrid system with a design output of 220 kW at the University of California, Irvine’s National Fuel Cell Research Center

2007 – Announcement of the first mass production of fuel cell cars (FCX Clarity) by Honda

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Details on the history of fuel cells can be found in:

J. M. Andujar and F. Segura, Fuel cells: History and updating. A walk along two centuries, Renewable and Sustaible Energy Reviews 2009, 13, 2309–2322

Leo J. M. J. Blomen and Michael N. Mugerwa, Fuel Cell Systems, New York: Plenum Press, 1993

M. L. Perry and T. F. Fuller, A historical perspective of fuel cell technology in the 20th century, Journal of The Electrochemical Society 2002, 149, S59-S67

http://americanhistory.si.edu/fuelcells/index.htm