China has developed first coal fuel cell that generates electricity directly; everything we know about it in Commodity News 28/04/2026 A research team in China has developed a coal-based fuel cell that generates electricity without burning coal. Instead of combustion, the system uses electrochemical oxidation to convert the chemical energy in coal directly into power, reported South China Morning Post. The system, developed by Xie Heping and his team at Shenzhen University, converts coal’s chemical energy directly into electricity through electrochemical oxidation, avoiding conventional burning. How does it work? The team has built what it calls a zero-carbon-emission direct coal fuel cell (ZC-DCFC). In the process, coal is pulverised, dried, purified and pre-treated before being fed into the anode chamber of the cell. Oxygen is supplied to the cathode, where fine coal particles undergo electrochemical reactions across an oxide membrane, generating electricity without any intermediate steam cycle or mechanical turbine. At the anode outlet, high-purity carbon dioxide is captured in situ and converted into useful products such as synthesis gas or mineral compounds like sodium bicarbonate, making the process both efficient and clean. Higher theoretical efficiency Traditional coal plants rely on combustion to produce steam that drives turbines, a system constrained by the Carnot cycle, which caps efficiency at around 40%. By eliminating combustion and thermal conversion losses, the ZC-DCFC offers significantly higher theoretical efficiency. “This process is bound by the Carnot cycle, capping energy efficiency at around 40%. In the ZC-DCFC, by avoiding the efficiency losses associated with combustion and thermal engines, it enables substantially higher theoretical efficiency,” according to Xie’s findings published in the journal Energy Reviews. Process can generate electricity directly at depths of up to 2km Since 2018, the research team has addressed key technical challenges, including material performance, durability, fuel processing and continuous coal feeding. Earlier direct carbon fuel cells struggled with low power output and short lifespans, but the newly developed cell improves scalability, stability, carbon conversion efficiency and overall system integration. The concept could also be extended to deep underground coal seams, potentially enabling electricity generation directly at depths of up to 2km, reducing the need for costly mining operations and easing pressure on depleting shallow reserves. Xie’s group is also spearheading a landmark project under the National Science and Technology Major Project for Deep Earth Probe and Mineral Resources Exploration, launched in 2025. By adapting the ZC-DCFC to withstand high temperatures, pressures and corrosive environments, the project enables the fuel cell to serve the deep-earth exploration initiative directly. Wei Zhijiang of HBIS Group Xuansteel noted that scaling the technology from laboratory to industrial use will require significant time and cost optimization. He believed the technology would not be cost-competitive until after 2045. Source: CNBCTV18 2026-04-28 hellenicshippingnews... window.___gcfg = {lang: 'en-US'}; (function(w, d, s) { function go(){ var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0], load = function(url, id) { if (d.getElementById(id)) {return;} js = d.createElement(s); js.src = url; js.id = id; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); }; load('//connect.facebook.net/en/