Message from the Editors

In recent years, considerable interest has developed in hydrogen as a potential clean fuel and energy vector for a sustainable future. Advocates for hydrogen see it as a route to a low-carbon economy based on renewable, natural forms of primary energy, which are converted to hydrogen to serve as a synthetic fuel and means of electricity storage. An integral aspect of this “Hydrogen Economy” is the fuel cell, a device to convert hydrogen directly to electricity for transportation and other applications. Government agencies worldwide have taken up the theme, along with manufacturers who are developing fuel cell cars and buses.

Manufacturers around the world continue to engage in the development of more efficient batteries—in hybrid or pure-electric configurations—thereby enhancing vehicle design in order to meet legislation and incentives relating to pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.

The world requires an energy supply that will satisfy the needs of the human race on an indefinite basis without causing long-term damage to the environment. The conversion and storage of energy via electrochemical systems—batteries, fuel cells, supercapacitors, and photoelectrochemical cells—can assist efforts to meet this challenge by providing adequate, safe, economical, environmentally benign, and equitable power supplies. At this tipping point for both consumers and those working in industry, we introduce the Encyclopedia of Electrochemical Power Sources.

Meet the Editors

Editor-in-Chief
Jürgen Garche, ZSW Center for Hydrogen and Solar Research, Ulm, Germany
Professor Garche has received several important honors for his contributions to electrochemical energy conversion, including the Christian-Friedrich-Schönbein Gold Medal of the European Fuel Cell Forum. Jürgen Garche began his scientific career in Dresden, were he studied and graduated in chemistry at the Technical University. During his time at TU as a lecturer for Technical Electrochemistry, he studied with the famous electrochemist Kurt Schwabe. In 1991, Garche joined ZSW in Ulm; soon afterward he was also appointed professor at the University of Ulm. Under his supervision the institute expanded and developed an increased interest in fuel cell research leading also to stack development, which is the basis of the fuel cell activities today. Professor Garche has published nearly 300 papers on electrochemical energy conversion; mainly batteries, fuel cells and electrochemical capacitors.

Section Editors
Christopher Dyer, Lightening Energy, NJ, USA
Currently chief technology officer and co-founding board director at Lightening Energy, Dr. Dyer is well recognized internationally as a leader in developing both batteries and fuel cells for high-tech applications. His accomplishments at Bell Laboratories, Telcordia, and Motorola included inventing innovative power supplies for satellite systems and portable electronic devices. He is an important leader in the battery and fuel cell power industry through his editorship of the prestigious international Journal of Power Sources—the world’s leading peer-reviewed journal for batteries, fuel cells, and capacitors, which reports on the latest advances in all these fields. Dr. Dyer has a PhD from Cambridge University in the UK.

Patrick T. Moseley, International Lead Zinc Research Organization Inc., NC, USA
Dr. Pat Moseley is the manager for Electrochemistry and the Advanced Lead-Acid Battery Consortium within ILZRO, and the special issues coordinating editor for the Journal of Power Sources. He has been involved in numerous electrochemical energy storage and battery management projects for hybrid vehicle applications over the last ten years.

Zempachi Ogumi, Graduate School of Engineering, Kyoto University, Japan
Professor Ogumi received his PhD from Kyoto University in 1974. He conducted his post-doctoral research at Fritz-Haber Institute of Max-Planck Gesellschaft in West Germany. Currently he is a professor at the Department of Energy and Hydrocarbon Chemistry, Graduate School of Engineering, Kyoto University. Since 1999, he has served as regional editor, China and Japan, for the Journal of Power Sources.

David A. J. Rand, CSIRO Energy Technology, Australia
Dr. David Rand is a graduate of Cambridge University, where he gained his BA, MA, PhD, and ScD degrees. He joined CSIRO in 1969 and is now a chief research scientist at CSIRO Energy Technology. He is Australia’s leading authority on the science, technology, and manufacturing principles of all conventional and advanced rechargeable battery systems. The results of his research on lead-acid battery science and technology have been applied by industry in many countries. Dr. Rand’s international standing as a battery scientist is reflected by the award of the Electrochemistry Medal of the Royal Chemical Society, and the Gaston Planté Medal of the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences. He is also a fellow of the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering. Dr. Rand has been the Asia-Pacific regional editor of Journal of Power Sources since 1981.

Bruno Scrosati, Dipartimento di Chimica, Universita' Degli Studi di Roma Sapienza, Italy
Bruno Scrosati received his PhD in electrochemistry at the University of Rome, where since 1980 he has served as full professor of electrochemistry. He was also a visiting professor at the Department of Chemical Engineering & Materials Science, University of Minnesota. His society posts include vice president and president of the International Society of Solid State Ionics, President of the Italian Chemical Society, fellow of the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC), and President of the Electrochemical Society. The recipient of several prizes in his field, Professor Scrosati is European editor of the Journal of Power Sources and member of the editorial boards of various international journals. He has authored more than 350 scientific publications, 9 books, 10 chapters, and 16 patents.