University of South Florida

Robert Frederick Benson

Lawrence C Langebrake

Andres M Cardenas-Valencia

David P Fries

Dean F Martin

The present invention provides a galvanic cell having an aluminum anode and a cathode compartment design suitable for carrying out the aqueous electrochemical reaction between solid aluminum metal and aqueous peroxide ions. The galvanic cell is activated when water, aqueous hydroxide solution, or an aqueous salt solution is added to the cell. This reaction releases a significant amount of electrochemical energy from a small size (mass or volume) cell. This cell reaction and design leads to an improvement in energy released over state-of-the-art aluminum/hydrogen peroxide galvanic cells.

Aluminum galvanic cell

Aluminum and solid alkali peroxide galvanic cell

An actuated galvanic cell is described which generated electric current responsive to introduction of electrolyte from a secondary containment means. Also housed within the containment means is a propellant which serves to drive the electrolyte from the containment means into the reaction chamber for electric current production. This propellant system is chosen from thermal, phase change, and other systems which as opposed to physical pumps impel the electrolyte into the reaction chamber without the need for additional introduction apparatus.

Actuated electrochemical power source

The present invention is a method of generating electrical energy from chemically generated hydrogen and oxygen including the steps of establishing a first reaction compartment, generating hydrogen gas from a reaction of aluminum metal and aqueous alkali solution in the first reaction compartment, establishing a second reaction compartment, generating oxygen gas from a reaction of oxygenated salt, water and a catalyst in the second reaction compartment, fluidly coupling the first reaction compartment to a fuel cell anode, fluidly coupling the second reaction compartment to a fuel cell cathode, and feeding the hydrogen and oxygen gas to a fuel cell to generate electricity.

Fuel cell with simultaneous gas generation

Fuel cell

This invention relates to the extraction of carbonates of magnesium and/or calcium with a strong hydrogen form cation-exchange resin from a phosphate rock composition in an aqueous slurry, wherein the phosphate rock and the resins have been classified to different non-overlapping particle sizes and separating the slurry into the leached composition and the loaded ion exchange resin; and recovering the calcium and magnesium, and regenerating the ion exchange resin for further use in the process.

Growing community of inventors

St. Petersburg, FL, United States of America

Robert Frederick Benson