FuelCellsWorks

VANCOUVER– Ballard Power Systems (TSX: BLD; NASDAQ: BLDP) will hold its Annual General Meeting on Tuesday, June 2, 2009, at 1:00pm PST at the Pan Pacific Hotel, 999 Canada Place, Vancouver, BC.Included in the event, Mr. John Sheridan, Ballard Power Systems’ President and Chief Executive Officer, will discuss the company’s strategy and progress.

This event will be audio webcast and will be accessible on Ballard’s web site at www.ballard.com. The webcast will be archived for replay for one month.

About Ballard Power Systems

Ballard Power Systems (TSX: BLD; NASDAQ: BLDP) is recognized as a world leader in the design, development, manufacture and sale of clean energy fuel cell products. Ballard’s mission is to accelerate fuel cell product adoption. To learn more about what Ballard is doing with Power to Change the World(R), visit www.ballard.com.

Ballard, the Ballard logo and Power to Change the World are registered trademarks of  Ballard Power Systems Inc.

Japanese companies NTT, Toho Gas and Sumitomo Precision Products have achieved a major leap forward in the production of efficient fuel cells. Their new and jointly developed fuel cell system [JP] boasts record-high efficiency (in the field of commercial applications, at least).

The system uses city gas as the source of hydrogen and houses a few dozens of flat fuel cells in a device so that no heat can escape. By 2012 at the latest, the system is planned to be sold to restaurants and convenience stores wanting to lower heating, cooling and lighting costs.

The system features a power output of 30kw and an energy efficiency of up to 59%. According to the companies involved in the development, buyers can expect the system to run for several thousand hours. This is how the current prototype performs, but the final version is supposed to boast an operating time of several tens of thousands of hours.

by Michal on April 28, 2009

This eco-ride is the future for Honda’s popular CB Series of motorcycles. Designer Igor Chak has designed this 2015 Honda CB 750 equipped with sophisticated technology and an unmatched style. The bike is powered by hydrogen and is a zero emission concept motorcycle.

Nearly all the systems for this bike are computerized and can be controlled by the 5” OLED multi-touch display screen. The display screen allows access to a menu that houses options for the GPS, Drive Modes, and Diagnostic Modes. The screen is mounted on the fuel tank which makes it easily accessible and it adds appeal to the design of the bike.

The CB 750 will be mainly constructed out of light weight materials such as carbon fiber, aluminum, and titanium. The bike will be powered by a four-cylinder liquid hydrogen engine that will emit only a small amount of clean water. For enhanced performance, the engine will be stacked with a six speed dual clutch transmission with electric lurch and traction control. For protection of its riders, the bike is packed with ABS, airbag, steering damper and radar technology used to automatically slow the bike down when a collision is sensed.

This bike is considered to be a futuristic take on the CB Series that was first seen in the 1970’s and gives us an idea of what to expect down the road for the motorcycle industry.

Source: EcoFriend

UvA researchers take leap forward in ‘clean’ production

Researchers at the University of Amsterdam (UvA) have succeeded in producing hydrogen using light as an energy source. Their findings are reported in the scientific journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) that was published this week. The discovery is important in the context of global energy issues. Hydrogen gas is touted as a form of green energy since its only by-product on combustion is water. However, the use of hydrogen can only be considered ‘clean’ if it can also be produced ‘cleanly’ from recyclable raw materials. It is precisely in this area that a major advance has now been achieved.

Supra-molecular complexes

There are enzymes in nature (so-called hydrogenase enzymes) that generate hydrogen from protons and electrons with great speed and efficiency. There are also ingenious systems in nature that convert light into usable energy. In the process of photosynthesis, light energy is converted into chemical energy. Inspired by these natural processes, the researchers – Joost Reek, Sander Kluwer, Ruta Kapra and Fred Brouwer – developed supra-molecular complexes able to produce hydrogen using light as an energy source. They made synthetic models for the active components using hydrogenase enzymes and the photosynthetic system, and merged these by means of supra-molecular technology (a molecular variant of Velcro).The current results reflect the power of the supra-molecular approach in catalysis research. Using a small set of components, the researchers quickly generated and evaluated a number of analogue structures. Just one of the structures produced the desired reactivity. The supra-molecular approach is not only a very promising method of tracking down new reactivity; it also opens the way for follow-up research where the catalyst will form a part of a larger system.

Publication data

A.M. Kluwer, R. Kapre, F. Hartl, M. Lutz, A.L. Spek, A.M. Brouwer, P.W.N.M van Leeuwen, J.N.H. Reek. ‘Self-assembled Biomimetic [2Fe2S]-Hydrogenase Based Photocatalyst for Molecular Hydrogen Evolution’, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, January 2009.

Sacramento, Calif. — Today the California Fuel Cell Partnership (CaFCP) accepted the keys to a Toyota FCHV-adv fuel cell vehicle.   Toyota staff drove the hydrogen-fueled vehicle from Torrance to West Sacramento on Wednesday without refueling, demonstrating this zero-emission vehicle’s long driving range.

CaFCP staff will take turns using the SUV for business and personal trips, as well as using it in CaFCP’s outreach program. It joins a Daimler F-Cell and Chevy Equinox FCV in the CaFCP fleet.

Last summer, CaFCP’s executive director, Catherine Dunwoody, drove the previous model of Toyota’s Highlander FCHV for several legs during the Hydrogen Road Tour, which traveled from Maine to California.

A small Littleton company is making plans to build a manufacturing plant for its fuel cells, which use hydrogen to generate up to 10 kilowatts of power — more than twice as much as the average residential solar system.

“We’re about six to 12 months away from making decisions on where, how and when to build a manufacturing plant,” said Bob Stokes, CEO of Versa Power Systems Inc. Details, including the size of the plant and how it will be paid for, still are being worked out, he said.

Privately held Versa Power, which has 40 employees, was founded in 2001 as a joint venture involving the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, and three other research groups or companies. The company isn’t profitable yet, but 2008 revenue was approximately $7.5 million, and sales may clear $10 million this year, Stokes said.

Versa Power works on solid oxide fuel cells, using hydrogen at super-high operating temperatures — 1,300 to 1,800 degrees Fahrenheit — to produce electricity, heat and water.

Original Link to Story http://denver.bizjournals.com/denver/stories/2009/05/04/story9.html