Fuel cell research has recently become a high-profile endeavor due to the promise of pollution-free efficient energy production. According to experts the 100-ear petroleum era is almost over. Global oil production is expected to peak sometime between 2004 and 2008. Petroleum geologists continue to search for new fields but no significant reserves have been found since the 1970s.Billions of dollars have been poured into new drilling technology but this investment is not expected to make a significant difference to the gloom prediction. Traditional fossil fuel conversion relies on combustion methods that are subject to the thermodynamic laws that limit conversion efficiency, whereas a fuel cell is a device that generates electricity b a chemical reaction that is not subject to these limits. Increasing energy demands will require more efficient conversion of the dwindling oil reserves and so the race is on to commercialize fuel cell technology. Unfortunately, building inexpensive, reliable and efficient fuel cells is a complicated business. Impurities in the fuel (i.e.sulfur) and secondary reactions in the process (carbon monoxide) can poison expensive catalysts. Preferred low-temperature operation often requires a “reformer” to convert the fossil fuel into pure hydrogen. In many cases, accurate process gas analysis plays an important part in the development of improved devices. This application note will describe the various fuel cell technologies and highlight the role that Thermo analyzers can play in their development.