The factors influenced on degradation of direct hydrazine hydrate fuel cells (DHFCs) under operation conditions are analyzed by in situ soft X-ray radiography. A durability of DHFCs is significantly improved by multi-step reaction DHFCs (MSR-DHFCs) approach designed to decrease the crossover of liquid fuel. An open circuit voltage (OCV) as well as cell voltage at 5 mA cm(-2) of MSR-DHFC construct with commercial anion exchange membrane (AEM) maintained for over of 3500 h at 60 degrees C. Furthermore, the commercial proton exchange membrane (PEM) is integrated into AEM of MSR-DHFCs resulting in stable power output of MSR-DHFCs for over than 2800 h at 80 degrees C. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.