Fuel Cell Reducks: a comment from Dick on my pollyanish post about fuel cells asked "what fuel are you going to use to power them?"--meaning the fuel cells-- forced me to do some research. The fuel cells do NOT just make hydrogen, nor do they manufacture it. You have to buy it from somewhere, store it, and then use it.
It turns out that fuel is the main thing holding fuel cells back. They have been called Hydrogen Fuel Cells because hydrogen is supposedly available everywhere to be used as fuel, and it is---BUT it is so dangerous to store that hydrogen could blow everything up. They are working on device called a "reformer" that will make possible the storage of hydrogen as a part of the fuel cell. There are further efforts to completely eliminate reformers able to store hydrogen; research is well along to devise something to store hydrogen safely.
The issue is finding sources of pure hydrogen. Currently, the least expensive way of deriving hydrogen is by reforming natural gas, which means we will continue to be reliant on fossil fuels. Another way to produce hydrogen is through electrolysis of water, using electricity or sunlight.
Right now methanol is being used for the fuel. We are years away from freedom from oil producers. Fuel cells work but powering them is a problem.
Thanx to poster, Dick.
4/28/2006
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3 comments:
Howard, take another look at the MIT presentation pages 75 & 76. I'm an Aerospace Engineer and am quite familiar with the use of hydrogen as a fuel - both gaseous and liquid. "All fuels are potentially dangerous" and gasoline poses as big a safety risk as does hyrdrogen. Safety codes have made the risk of using gas acceptable as a fuel and the same can and will be done with hydrogen.
The scare isn't with the cars blowing up, it is in the storage and transportation of hydrogen. I agree they will find a way, in fact they are very close to finding a way now.
Most hydrogen fuel cells that are projected to actually WORK use either natural gas, propane, or gasoline as their hydrogen source. Hydrogen is the lightest element and is the most difficult to pack densly in a space. The fuel tank specs for a pure hydrogen fuel are amazingly hard to comply with. It's something like 300 atmospheres to pack the hydrogen in there. As an engineer, I don't want that in my trunk, regardless of whether what's stored in it is inert or explosive. For the next five to ten years, we're looking at more efficient vehicles, energy shifting of coal/wind/solar, mining oil shale, and blending alcohol into the mix before we get cost-effective hydrogen. The United States has enough oil shale to be self sufficient for about 50 years if we're willing to use it. And I sure think we'll be willing to use it when gas hits $5 per gallon.
I love my pickup, but I just plopped $1K down on fixing my old Celica because it gets 25 miles per gallon and will pay for that $1K in 3-4 months of gas price difference. Think about that. When people realize they can get a Jetta TDI and get 40mpg in the city on regular diesel, who's gonna sit around playing with 15 mpg vehicles at $5 per gallon? I'm certainly looking at Jettas right now.
Detroit better be worried! Maybe they can buy some engines from the Germans and slap them in some neons, or something.
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