Conventionally, two critical issues that limit the steady-state discharge of alkaline liquid fuel cells are the pH-dependant problem at anode and the carbonation problem at cathode. The present work addresses these two issues by reporting an anion-exchange membrane direct liquid fuel cell that uses a pH-insensitive fuel, formate, as the reductant, and a CO2-free reactant, hydrogen peroxide, as the oxidant, referred to as anion-exchange membrane direct formate-peroxide fuel cell (AEM DFPFC). Theoretically, the cell voltage of the AEM DFPFC can be as high as 1.92 V. It has been experimentally demonstrated that a conceptual half-hour constant-current discharge of the AEM DFPFC almost remains unchanged, even eliminating the supporting electrolytes at both anode and cathode. In contrast, an anion exchange membrane direct ethanol fuel cell (AEM DEFC) shows a sharp decline in constant discharge within a few seconds. Copyright (C) 2015, Hydrogen Energy Publications, LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.