Microfluidic and nanofluidic fuel cells: towards next generation on-chip power sources

微型燃料电池系统可能是最有前途的技术，可以缓解世界上对在小型、轻型设备中存储大量电力的迫切需求。这些燃料电池的潜在应用种类之多令人惊讶：由小型燃料电池供电的生物医学设备可能会给从糖尿病控制到心血管手术的各种医疗保健服务带来革命性的变化；微型无线传感器可以配备燃料电池以延长使用寿命；越来越受欢迎的iPhone等便携式电子设备可能会利用增强的多媒体功能和更长的运行时间。基于燃料电池的电源还具有通过即时更换燃料盒按需充电的独特能力，并且不需要接入电网。

Miniaturized fuel cell systems may be the most promising technology for mitigation of the world's critical need to store large amounts of power within small, light-weight devices. The variety of potential applications for these fuel cells is astonishing: biomedical devices powered by small fuel cells could revolutionize health care services ranging from diabetes control to cardiovascular surgery; tiny wireless sensors could be equipped with a fuel cell to increase the service life; and portable electronic equipment such as the increasingly popular iPhone may capitalize on enhanced multimedia functionality and prolonged runtimes. Fuel cell-based power sources also have the unique capability of on-demand recharge by instant replacement of the fuel cartridge and do not require access to the power grid.