Grove, Sir William Robert
Published: December 28, 2006, 8:33 pm
Updated: December 28, 2006, 8:33 pm
This article has been reviewed by the following Topic Editor:
Tom Lawrence
Sir William Robert Grove (1811-1896), a British physicist and justice of Britain's high court. He first demonstrated the fuel cell while experimenting with electrolysis in 1839. He reasoned that if electricity could produce hydrogen and oxygen, then combining the two (reversing the process) should create electricity. Grove tested this theory by enclosing two platinum strips in separate sealed bottles, one containing hydrogen and the other containing oxygen. When these containers were immersed in diluted sulfuric acid, a current began to flow between the two electrodes and water was formed in the gas bottles—Grove had devised the world’s first “gas battery,” later renamed the fuel cell. However, interest in Grove's gas battery diminished with the discovery of cheap, abundant fossil fuels that could more effectively and affordably generate electricity.
Further Reading
History of Fuel Cells (Smithsonian Institute, National Museum of American History)
Sir William Robert Grove - Biography (Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Institute of Chemistry)
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Citation
Cutler J. Cleveland (Lead Author);Tom Lawrence (Topic Editor) "Grove, Sir William Robert". In: Encyclopedia of Earth. Eds. Cutler J. Cleveland (Washington, D.C.: Environmental Information Coalition, National Council for Science and the Environment). [First published in the Encyclopedia of Earth December 28, 2006; Last revised Date December 28, 2006; Retrieved May 23, 2013 <http://www.eoearth.org/article/Grove,_Sir_William_Robert>
The Author
Cutler J. Cleveland is Professor of Earth and Environment at Boston University, where he also is on the faculty of the Center for Energy and Environmental Studies. Professor Cleveland is Editor-in-Chief of the Encyclopedia of Energy (Elsevier, 2004), winner of an American Library Association award, the Dictionary of Energy (Elsevier, 2005), Handbook of Energy (Elsevier, forthcoming), and is the Founding Editor-in-Chief of the Encyclopedia of Earth. He is the recipient of the Adelma ... (Full Bio)
Sir William Robert Grove (1811-1896), a British physicist and justice of Britain's high court. He first demonstrated the fuel cell while experimenting with electrolysis in 1839. He reasoned that if electricity could produce hydrogen and oxygen, then combining the two (reversing the process) should create electricity. Grove tested this theory by enclosing two platinum strips in separate sealed bottles, one containing hydrogen and the other containing oxygen. When these containers were immersed in diluted sulfuric acid, a current began to flow between the two electrodes and water was formed in the gas bottles—Grove had devised the world’s first “gas battery,” later renamed the fuel cell. However, interest in Grove's gas battery diminished with the discovery of cheap, abundant fossil fuels that could more effectively and affordably generate electricity.
Further Reading
History of Fuel Cells (Smithsonian Institute, National Museum of American History)
Sir William Robert Grove - Biography (Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Institute of Chemistry)
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