SRM to introduce course on fuel cell technology

Chennai, Feb 22 (UNI) Leading educational institution, SRM University will introduce a course on Fuel Cell Technology from the coming academic year 2008-09, its Chancellor T R Pachamuthu announced today.

Talking to UNI on the sidelines of a National Workshop on Fuel Cell Technology at the university campus in suburban Kattankulathur, he said it would be introduced as an elective course for the Mechanical and Chemical engineering students.

The course contents included introduction and history of various fuel cell systems, fuel cell fundamentals including thermodynamics, electrode kinetics, fuel cell performance and transport issues, fuel cell characterisation, bio-fuel cell and overview of the current fuel cell industry.

To promote research in fuel cell technology, an energy lab would be set up with an investment of 70,000 US Dollars in association with the Queen's University, Kingston, Canada.

The lab would be equipped with various kinds of equipment for fuel cell technology and would be ready in the next three months.

Under an agreement signed with the Queen's University, SRM would send its faculty for one semester or one year training there on the emerging technology, which was aimed at producing green and clean fuel to meet the growing power requirments of the country.

Observing that the 21st century would be the 'century of the fuel cell,' which was on the verge of being introduced commercially, Mr Pachamuthu said the national workshop was organised by his university keeping this in mind.

The workshop was to train the faculty of engineering institutions in the area on fuel cell technology and motivate them to enter into the rich research areas.

The objective of the workshop was also to impart advanced knowledge of fuel cell technology to practicing engineers, scientists from industries and research organisations by experts on the field from Queen's University.

UNI GV SJ RL RN1557