Process for converting chemical energy into electrical energy

Claim 1

IN A PROCESS FOR ENHANCING THE CONVERSION OF CHEMICAL ENERGY INTO ELECTRICAL ENERGY IN AN ELECTROCHEMICAL REACTION SYSTEM HAVING (A) A RELATIVELY REDUCIBLE OXIDANT SUBSYSTEM, INCLUDING (A-1) GASEOUS OXIDANT REACTANT, AND (A-2) AN ELECTRON TRANSFER SPECIES; (B) A RELATIVELY OXIDIZABLE FUEL SUBSYSTEM INCLUDING (B-1) A GASEOUS FUEL REACTANT, (B-2) AN ELECTRON TRANSFER SPECIES, SAID SUBSYSTEM BEING ELECTRONICALLY ISOLATED FROM ONE ANOTHER BY AN ELECTROLYTE, EACH OF SAID SUBSYSTEMS INCLUDING AN ELECTRODE FORMING PART OF AN ELECTRONIC CIRUCIT, THE ELECTRODES BEING POSITIONED IN SPACED RELATIONSHIP TO ONE ANOTHER AND BEING PERMEABLE TO SAID RESPECTIVE GASEOUS REACTANTS, SAID ELECTRODES HAVING REACTIVE SURFACES, INCLUDING ADJACENT, SPACED, INTERNAL SURFACES, SAID LIQUID ELECTROLYTE BEING DISPOSED IN THE SPACE BETWEEN SAID ELECTRODE INTERNAL SURFACES AND FORMING REACTIVE INTERFACES AT SAID ELECTRODES, MEANS FOR SUPPLYING A GASEOUS, REDUCIBLE OXIDANT TO SAID OXIDATION SUBSYSTEMS, MEANS FOR SUPPLYING A GASEOUS, OXIDIZABLE FUEL TO SAID FUEL SUBSYSTEM, THE STEPS OF MATCHING THE OXIDATION-REDUCTION POTENTIAL OF (A-1) WITH (A-2) WITHIN THE RANGE OF $0.15 VOLT, (A-1) BEING AN OXYGEN-CONTAING GAS HAVING AN OXIDATIONREDUCTION POTENTIAL OF FROM -0.70 VOLT TO 0.15 VOLT, AND (A-2) BEING SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF PBO, PBO2; PBO; PB3O4; PB3O4, PBO2; RE2O7; RE2O8; 2RHO, RH2O3; CR2O3, CRO2; V2O4, V2O5; V2O3, V2O4; SB2O3, SB2O4; SB2O3, SB2O5; MOO2; MOO3; CU2O, CUO; MNO, MNO2; MNO, MN3O2; CU, CU2O; BIO, BI2O3; AND COO, CO2O4 AND CHEMICAL AND PHYSICAL COMBINATIONS AND MIXTURES, THEREOF, AND HAVING AN OXIDATION-REDUCTION POTENTIAL OF FROM SUBSTANTIALLY -0.838 TO 0.283 VOLT, MATCHING THE OXIDATION-REDUCTION POTENTIAL OF (B-1) WITH (B-2) WITHIN THE RANGE OF $0.15 VOLT, (B-1) BEING SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF A HYDROCARBON OF FROM ONE TO SIX CARBON ATOMS AND HYDROGEN AND HAVING AN OXIDATION-REDUCTION POTENTIAL OF FROM SUBSTANTIALLY -1.47 VOLT TO SUBSTANTIALLY 0.32 VOLT, AND (B-2) BEING SELECTED FROM THE GROUP CONSISTING OF WO2, WO3; NB2O4, NB2O5; SB2O3; SB2O3; SB2O4; MNO, MN2O3; MNO, MN3O4; MOO2, MOO3; V2O3, V2O4; AND BIO, BI2O3 AND CHEMICAL AND PHYSICAL COMBINATIONS AND MIXTURES THEREOF, AND HAVING AN OXIDATION-REDUCTION POTENTIAL OF FORM SUBSTANTIALLY -0.454 VOLT OT -1.380 VOLTS.