FUEL CELLS AND UNIVERSITY RESEARCH: THE REPORT OF THE ENERGY COMMITTEE'S WORKING GROUP ON FUEL CELLS

A SERC reassessment of fuel cells was prompted by a letter in early August 1981 to Sir Geoffrey Allen, then Chairman of SERC, from the Chief Engineer and Scientist of DoI, Dr. Duncan Davies. A copy of the Davies letter was passed on to ERSU with a request for information about univeristy research activity within the UK in this field. The consensus of opinion at these meetings was that the UK should not attept to repeat the work on first-generation fuel cells being carried out in the USA, Japan, Belgium, and Germany. However, it was felt that universities should be encouraged to strengthen their research efforts in a few fundamental areas that were identified as essential for the materials breakthroughs needed to develop a viable second-generation fuel-cell technology, and it was decided to recommend that the Energy Committee of SERC give ERSU a watching brief with a mandate to review the situation in 18 months. Having considered the recommendations arising out of the Fuel-Cell Appraisal Meeting and the follow-on meeting between SERC and government departments, the Energy Committee set up a Working Group on Fuel Cells and asked it: to identify problems and those areas where work could usefully be carried out in the universities, to consider how university research into identified areas can be initiated and supported, and to prepare a report for the Energy Committee of SERC containing recommendations relating to university research in this field. This report has been prepared in response to that request.

• Corporate Authors:

  Rutherford Appleton Laboratory

  Chilton, Didot
  Oxon OX11 OQX,   England 
• Authors:
  • Callagher-Daggitt, G E
• Publication Date: 1984

Media Info

• Pagination: 41 p.

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Development; Financing; Foreign; Fuel cells; Materials; Research; Universities and colleges
• Uncontrolled Terms: Research and development
• Subject Areas: Education and Training; Energy; Geotechnology; Highways; Materials; Research; I10: Economics and Administration;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00387338
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: Energy Research Abstracts
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Sep 28 1984 12:00AM