Dr FuelCell® Science Kit

Students Science Kit for Solar Hydrogen Technology

The Dr FuelCell® Science Kit is an extensive experiment set for the subject of renewable energies. Flexible components, 20 pre-configured experiments and detailed supplementary material make it a complete solution for teaching physics and chemistry in grades 9—12.

Curriculum oriented instruction material (Grades 9—12)
20 pre-configured experiments for individual or group work
Immediately ready to use; no additional materials needed *
Robust and user-friendly components
Practical and easy-to-operate load measurement box for measuring current and voltage
Expandable, for gaining expert knowledge of fuel cells

A complete energy cycle

The Dr FuelCell® Science Kit reproduces a complete solar hydrogen energy cycle. It makes it possible to approach the subject of renewable energies both as a complete cycle and at the level of the single technologies of photovoltaics and the fuel cell.

Interdisciplinary applications

The curriculum-oriented documentation of the Dr FuelCell® Science Kit contains more than 20 pre-configured experiments with technical background information as an ideal preparation aid for instruction. The system is suitable for content from the curricula of physics and chemistry for the lower and upper secondary level:

Molecules and chemical reactions
Reaction speeds
Thermodynamics
Electrochemistry
Energy conversion and efficiency
Planning and implementation of scientific experiments

Extensive features

The package includes a solar panel, an electrolyzer with two graduated storage cylinders, a fuel cell and a load measurement box. A methanol fuel cell and a takeapart fuel cell are optional.

The solar panel produces energy for the electrolyzer. The generated hydrogen is stored intermediately in graduated storage cylinders and converted to electric power by the fuel cell. The load measurement box is used to simulate consumers and to measure electric current and voltage. All technical components can also be used and examined separately.

The optional fuel cell types offer the possibility to gain in-depth knowledge of the specific functions and components of fuel cells, for example as a unit of instruction for the upper secondary level.

Components

The components of the Dr FuelCell® Science Kit can be used in various ways for instruction.

Solar panel

The 5-cell photovoltaic module is used for experiments in solar energy and for generating electric energy for the hydrogen generator. The practical base facilitates alignment to the light source.

Fuel Cell

The fuel cell generates electrical energy from hydrogen and oxygen. It is based on PEM technology, which is the most widespread technology used in the development of fuel cell applications, e.g. for motor vehicles or stationary power supply systems.

Take-apart fuel cell

The take-apart fuel cell makes it possible to examine the functions and the design of a fuel cell in detail. A plug-in resistor, an electrode with reduced catalyst quantity and an air panel for air instead of oxygen operation enable in-depth experiments.

Electrolyzer

The electrolyzer separates water into hydrogen and oxygen. It is operated with distilled water and requires no caustic solutions or acids. The integrated graduated hydrogen storage cylinders visualize the classic hydrogen separation experiment, as in the Hoffmann apparatus.

Load measurement box

The convenient and compact load measurement box is used for recording data during experiments. Integrated consumers, such as a motor, a lamp and 7 selectable resistors, enable numerous experiments, e.g. recording characteristic curves, or current and voltage.

Methanol fuel cell

The methanol fuel cell uses methanol instead of hydrogen to generate electrical energy. This makes it possible to conduct more extensive experiments. The package includes storage cylinders for storage of the methanol solutions.

Teaching Material

The 4-volume instruction material of the Dr FuelCell® Science Kit is designed for the lower and upper secondary level and consists of three experiment volumes and one volume with background information. The experiment volumes cover a broad spectrum of subjects from the physics and chemistry curricula:

Student assignments for independently conducting experiments both individually and in groups
Detailed teacher's guides with instructions for experiments, sample results and interpretations
Worksheets with short articles and written assignments for independent use in class or at home

The fourth book, "Principles and Applications", includes articles with background information that can be used independently in classes. The accompanying CD-ROM includes two videos and two PowerPoint presentations on the principles and applications of fuel cell technology and two experiments with the Dr FuelCell® Science Kit.

Examples of experiments:

Current/voltage characteristic curves of solar panel and fuel cell
Faraday's first law
Electrolysis
Dependence of solar current on the distance and incident angle of the light source
Series and parallel connection of solar and fuel cells
Water = 2 parts hydrogen + 1 part oxygen

Product Options

The Dr FuelCell® Science Kit is available in two versions: