0 Platinum? Fuel cell hybrids ready to lead an energy revolution
Maybe Honda
The leaps in fuel cell science cannot be denied
Is America sitting on the verge of an amazing clean and green energy revolution where a real plan towards energy independence is actually conceivable today? I’ve been wondering that more and more in the last few years, and this wonder has been driven significantly by fuel cells, not batteries.
So, why is this fuel cell lover, turned hater, rekindling old fuel cell passions?
It started with GM. Several years ago I attended a program called Fuel Cell University, hosted by GM. There GM claimed that scale could make fuel cell cars cost-competitive if a natural gas-to-hydrogen fueling infrastructure existed. While that didn’t convert me back towards a fully renewed fuel cell passion, it did make me believe that maybe fuel cells wouldn’t always be 10 years away from viability.
Fuel cell hate turned into fuel cell open-mindedness.
Then, when reports of much larger US natural gas supplies began to emerge in the last few years, the whole natural gas reformation angle started to sound somewhat more viable as an interim solution to some kind of more renewable form of hydrogen, such as solar hydrogen.
But what really re-ignited my infatuation was the constant stream of scientific breakthroughs in the fuel cell space.
On the fuel side, for instance, methanogenesis and bio-hydrogen breakthroughs began to imply that future fuel cell vehicles might be able to utilize several cost-effective, renewable sources of energy. Thus, natural gas reformation could serve purely as an interim technology. Moreover, natural gas could also be used by conventional vehicles right now – as well as by hybrid cars and plug-in vehicles, as already proven by Toyota’s natural gas hybrids.
Consequently, at least in theory, it began to seem that the US could actually declare war on foreign oil. Today. And the possibility of this immediacy was beginning to set my heart aflutter.
But, perhaps even more interesting has been the fuel cell side of the scientific breakthrough story these last few years. Essentially, fuel cell costs have rapidly declined in just the last year or two – rapidly - as longevity and reliability have increased. While there have been many breakthroughs in various parts of the fuel cell supply chain, in just the last year alone, for instance, it has been demonstrated that new fuel cells will only need to use the same amount of platinum as a conventional car. Since platinum accounts for easily 1/4 of total fuel cell costs, this breakthrough alone was truly groundbreaking.
Yet, even that breakthrough has now been topped.
The latest fuel cell research suggests that new fuel cells won’t need ANY platinum, while also being even more durable and flexible. In fact, new fuel cells will be able to utilize either hydrogen or methanol – making the fuel cell fueling infrastructure far more fungible than it has ever been – while offering cost-effective real world solutions that can be utilized today.
Have all the fuel cell kinks been worked out?
Not entirely. Much scale is still required. But if you string all the dots together, it’s clear that fuel cells are no longer always 10 years from reality. Fuel cell potential is now undeniable.
In my opinion, it is time for the US to declare war on foreign oil. It is time for the US to utilize all resources, knowledge and ingenuity to secure US energy independence as quickly as possible. With more efficient ICE engine technologies, hybrids and plug-ins, biofuels, natural gas and now fuel cells, we CAN envision a new, secure energy future that we can begin building right now. In fact, I believe energy independence can rebuild the US into greatness starting today. And soon we can share our energy security with the rest of the world – if they don’t beat us to the punch.
there is the one link in the article, smurf, http://www.greencarcongress.com/2011/03/wang-20110322.html, that takes you to this latest fuel cell breakthrough.
i could find some on methanogensis as well, that i’v covered in the past, for instance.
as i replied to Larry, what I find most interesting about this is that hydrogen might no longer be so relevant. instead of the hydrogen economy, the methanol economy might offer the same results, but at cheaper costs and with greener potential. or, it might be a combination of hydrogen, methanol economies. that provides lots of long term possibilities, while also offering lots of short term solutions for dealing with the legacy effect.
actually, larry, natural gas would be just one feedstock if new fuel cells are able to work equally well with either hydrogen or methanol – that’s what makes this recent breakthrough particularly interesting. methanol is largely derived from natural gas today, and that would probably be the best initial feedstock, but it can be produced from shale, oil tars, coal – any fossil fuel, etc., plus from biomass. additionally, methanol can be produced from co2. long term something like methanogenesis could result in an artificial photosynthesis that creates cheap renewable methanol.
therefore, as one odd example, if some of america’s extensive tar sands could be utilized – picking ones that offer the least environmental impact in terms of pollution other than co2 emissions, such as groundwater protection – then part of the tar sand to methanol process could include converting the extra co2 emissions into methanol. additionally, pumping this methanol into a fuel cell offers greater pollution reductions.
but that’s the long term. in the short term this methanol can be used today in any flex fuel vehicle and there are many millions of such vehicles already on the road today. moreover, it only costs a few hundred dollars to convert any vehicle, including hybrids and plug-in hybrids into flex-fuel hybrids. thus, methanol could be a legacy effect killer.
I think the idea of fuel cells is great for the economy on the grounds that this will create factories for the production of fuel cells.
seems like if fuel cells work on cars, that they’d also work on land to generate truly clean electricity.
no?
we’re talking about using natural gas as the feedstock – right? (as opposed to cracking hydrogen from water).
call me skeptical at this point but I too would find this possibility as very exciting but I’m one of those guys from Missouri on things that sound a bit too good to be true.
Dahc,
This is potentially great news….
Do you have any URL’s with new information?
I’ve been excited about hydrogen since the 70’s, but we haven’t seem to overcome the cost and infrastructure issues.
If gas prices keep going up, and the cost of hydrogen (and hydrogen vehicles) comes down, we may actually reach a point where hydrogen is a ligitimate solution…..