FuelCellsWorks

The Institute of High Temperature Electrochemistry of the Urals Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences has developed a chemical electric power source for Gazprom. It will be used for the cathode corrosion protection of the pipeline system.

In addition to being used on pipelines, the innovation has a great potential in the consumer market. The Institute informed RusBusinessNews that the solid oxide fuel cell technology is based on the electric burning of natural gas and is accompanied by release of energy that can be used for heating of cottages and houses which are remote from central services.

The capacity of a source may vary from 150 to 3,000 Watt. This will be in demand in those regions where there are gas deposits and the construction of power generating capacities is inexpedient. The cell can use spirit, paraffin, or any other flammable fluid which makes it possible to use it as a portable generator.

The manufacturing cost of fuel cells in a laboratory setting amounts to 80 to 100 thousand roubles. Currently the Institute’s management is carrying out negotiations with JSC Chepetsky Mechanical Plant in the town of Glazov on the establishment of batch production which would significantly reduce the cost of the new product.

The Department of Energy has announced funding for 37 ambitious transformational research projects – including one from the University of California Riverside for it’s Alkaline polymer electrolyte fuel cell membrane research. More details here.

University of California, Riverside    $760,705
Riverside, CA    Vehicle Technologies Alkaline polymer electrolyte fuel cell membranes that eliminate the use of expensive catalyst materials. Potential to drastically reduce fuel cell costs and enable their widespread application in building and automotive applications.

Washington DC–The comprehensive approach to advancing transportation and clean energy technologies embodied in the energy spending bill signed by President Obama this week is the best way to assure that the nation ends its dependence on imported fuels and reduces greenhouse gas emissions, three international trade associations said today.

“The FY 2010 Energy & Water Development Appropriation funds a full portfolio of advanced technologies and fuels for power generation and vehicles, including fuel cells, hydrogen, and batteries,” the Electric Drive Transportation Association (EDTA), National Hydrogen Association (NHA) and US Fuel Cell Council (USFCC) said in a joint statement. “Congress and the Administration are wisely investing in all the most promising advanced transportation and low carbon electricity options. All these pathways work cooperatively with renewable and traditional domestic energy sources.”

The bill allocates $311 million to vehicle electrification and advanced combustion systems, $220 million for advanced biofuels and $283 million for hydrogen and fuel cells in all applications.

“While vehicle options may enter the marketplace at different times and serve different early market segments, pursuing the full range of options gives America its best chance overall of meeting its energy security and environmental goals,” the organizations said.  “The National Research Council has recently concluded, in fact, that a successful portfolio approach could reduce passenger car demand for gasoline nearly to zero by 2050 with comparable reductions in emissions.  A multipronged approach will leverage complementary development pathways and accelerate the use of domestic resources.”

“We thank Congress for its tireless work to improve the federal energy budget, especially Senator Byron Dorgan (D-ND) and his Energy and Water Subcommittee, Congressman Steve Israel (D-NY) and the other members of the House Subcommittee, plus the Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Caucuses in both chambers,” they said.  “Their leadership and the bipartisan support of their colleagues in Congress were crucial to rebalancing the Administration’s budget request.”

EDTA, NHA and USFCC collectively represent more than 200 companies and organizations.

#  #  #

CONTACT:

NHA: Patrick Serfass, 202-223-5547×366

serfassp@HydrogenAssociation.org

USFCC: Bud DeFlaviis, 202 293 5500 x35

bdeflaviis@usfcc.com

EDTA: Jennifer Watts, 202-408-0774 x306

jwatts@electricdrive.org

About the National Hydrogen Association

The National Hydrogen Association (NHA) is the premier hydrogen trade organization led by over 100 companies dedicated to supporting the transition to hydrogen. Our efforts focus on education and outreach, policy, safety and codes and standards. Since 1989, the NHA has served as a catalyst for information exchange and cooperative projects, and continues to provide the setting for mutual support among industry, research, and government organizations.  Find out more at:  www.HydrogenAssociation.org

About the U.S. Fuel Cell Council

The USFCC is a trade association and voice of the fuel cell industry.  The USFCC is dedicated to fostering the commercialization of fuel cells. Our members include the world’s leading fuel cell developers, manufacturers, suppliers and customers. www.usfcc.com

About the Electric Drive Transportation Association

The Electric Drive Transportation Association (EDTA) is the trade association representing battery, hybrid, plug-in hybrid and fuel cell electric drive technologies and infrastructure. EDTA conducts public policy advocacy, education, industry networking, and international conferences. EDTA’s membership includes automotive and other equipment manufacturers, energy companies, technology developers, component suppliers, and government agencies. www.electricdrive.org

Hydrogen fuel, because its only byproduct is steam, should be the ultimate in green alternatives to fossil fuels, but it hasn’t delivered on its promise yet because of one enormous stumbling block, storage. Now a campus team of chemical engineers has developed a computational model that shows that carbon nanotubes may offer a surprising solution. Results are presented in the current online issue of the journal Applied Physics Letters.

“If this works as we expect, it’s perhaps no longer science fiction to hope for a briefcase-sized hydrogen battery to run a bus or car,” says Chemical Engineering professor Dimitrios Maroudas. “Hydrogen storage has been a huge problem in the energy field for the past 10 years because no one has been able to demonstrate a truly viable storage medium. We’ve shown that it’s possible to achieve hydrogen storage capacity up to 8 percent by weight using carbon nanotubes. This is an outstanding level, higher by 1 percent than the 2010 United States Department of Energy target for on-board hydrogen storage systems,” Maroudas adds. “The method we propose may lead to breaking the bottleneck.”

The computational model strongly lends itself to verification in laboratory experiments, say Maroudas and colleagues, and it provides ample testable hypotheses for future experimental research. “People had been losing faith, but I think our predictions show that hydrogen should be back on the table and in a most promising way. We come up with modeling predictions for technologically relevant problems every day, but this cute model is special,” he notes.

Specifically, Maroudas, his graduate student Andre Muniz and their collaborator M. Meyyappan, chief scientist for exploration technology at the Center for Nanotechnology at NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif., show that proper arrangement of carbon nanotubes can overcome hydrogen transport limitations in nanotube bundles. It should also prevent ineffective and nonuniform hydrogenation, which is caused by nanotube swelling due to chemisorption of hydrogen atoms on the nanotube walls.

If one were to think of carbon nanotube bundles as something like a toothbrush, one strategy that Maroudas and colleagues recommend for holding hydrogen atoms most efficiently is that the brush arrangement should not be too dense. If it is, when the tubules swell they’ll block efficient passage and diffusion of the hydrogen, Maroudas explains. In addition to an optimal bundle density, further improvement can be achieved by optimizing the individual nanotube configurations to limit their swelling upon hydrogenation.

Following this approach should result in one hydrogen atom being able to chemisorb onto — form a chemical bond with — each carbon atom of the nanotubes, leading to 100 percent (atomically) storage capacity, he adds. This chemisorbed hydrogen, bound to the surface, can then be easily released by applying heat.

Maroudas says, “We propose recipes that will be very easy for others to try, by which carbon nanotubes can be arranged to accomplish practically 100 percent storage atomically, which is nearly 8 percent by weight. You can’t get any greener than hydrogen as fuel, and if the experiments we envision lead to new technology that’s economically viable, that’s as good as it gets.” The work was supported by a National Science Foundation grant and a Fulbright/CAPES scholarship to Muniz.

Pioneering Iceland-Based Company Awarded Autodesk Inventor of the Month for October for Contributions to Fuel-Cell Technology

SAN RAFAEL, Calif– Icelandic Hydrogen used Autodesk Inventor software from Autodesk, Inc. (Nasdaq: ADSK), to design a complete on-board hydrogen energy system that powers the auxiliary engine for one of Iceland’s largest whale-watching vessels, enabling it to generate the electricity on board with clean, sustainable energy rather than oil. For its groundbreaking example of how ships can reduce their environmental impact, the Iceland-based hydrogen fuel cell company has been named the Autodesk Inventor of the Month for October 2009.

Most shipping vessels are propelled exclusively by oil. Since hydrogen can be made from water alone — and water vapor is its only by-product when burned — hydrogen fuel cells represent a more environmentally friendly option than traditional combustion engines.

As part of the SMART-H2 project managed by the public-private company Icelandic New Energy Ltd, Icelandic Hydrogen developed its hydrogen energy system for The Elding — a 130-ton, 150-passenger ship that serves as the flagship vessel for Iceland’s largest whale-watching operation.

“Inventor software was invaluable for testing the strength of the various parts to make sure that they could safely withstand the pressure that would be put on them,” said Hallmar Halldors, chief executive officer of Icelandic Hydrogen. “Digital Prototyping enabled us to fine-tune an accurate 3D model of the energy system before incurring any production costs and without compromising the safety of those involved in the project or on board the ship.”

The Inventor of the Month program recognizes the most innovative design and engineering advancements made by the extensive community using Autodesk Inventor software, which takes users beyond 3D to Digital Prototyping. With Inventor software, users can create a single digital model that gives them the ability to design, visualize and simulate products before they are built to reduce the necessity of constructing physical prototypes.

Icelandic Hydrogen also used AutoCAD Electrical software to create piping and instrumentation diagrams for the hydrogen system, seamlessly switching to Autodesk Inventor software to visualize and analyze the storage tanks, enclosures, tubing and other components.

The company was able to complete the project in just under seven months, helping to bring a viable hydrogen energy system to the open seas without any delay — an important point for a country exploring the possibilities of converting its entire transport system to hydrogen by 2050 and having an economy run only on locally sourced renewable energy.

“Digitally simulating the real-world performance of your product before anything is built saves time and money,” said Robert “Buzz” Kross, senior vice president, Manufacturing Industry Group at Autodesk. “Icelandic Hydrogen exemplifies the ways in which Inventor software helps companies innovate faster and smarter.”

About the Autodesk Inventor of the Month Program

Each month, Autodesk selects an Inventor of the Month from the users of Autodesk Inventor software, which takes manufacturers beyond 3D to Digital Prototyping. Winners are chosen for engineering excellence and groundbreaking innovation. For more information about Autodesk Inventor of the Month, contact IOM@autodesk.com.

About Icelandic Hydrogen

Established in 2007, Icelandic Hydrogen is a leading manufacturer of hydrogen gas generators and a developer of future energy infrastructure solutions within the renewable energy sector. For more information, visit www.iceh2.com.

About Autodesk

Autodesk, Inc., is a world leader in 2D and 3D design, engineering and entertainment software for the manufacturing, building and construction, and media and entertainment markets. Since its introduction of AutoCAD software in 1982, Autodesk continues to develop the broadest portfolio of state-of-the-art software to help customers experience their ideas digitally before they are built. Fortune 100 companies – as well as the last 14 Academy Award winners for Best Visual Effects – use Autodesk software tools to design, visualize and simulate their ideas to save time and money, enhance quality, and foster innovation for competitive advantage. For additional information about Autodesk, visit www.autodesk.com.

An interview with Icelandic Hydrogen is available on the Autodesk YouTube Channel at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5wg5kiYsceU.