In this case: never mind the talk about Hydrogen. What is being proposed here
is methanol power. Notice how there's no talk of ethanol or some other chemical
more widely available. Perhaps this is because they're not as often
manufactured by the Petroleum Industry. Medis (as covered in evworld.com a
couple of years ago) can provide an ethanol powered microfuel cell that can run
off of alcohol purchased at most any store (with modification perhaps), if the
powers-that-be would get behind it. But instead of mentioning this, this
article focuses on the supposed difficulty of buying methanol for the average
consumer. Methanol is presently largely made from Natural Gas, from what I
understand, though I reckon it could be made from more-renewable sources, going
forward.
If it's true that phones and laptops have been powered by batteries such as
NiMH, Li-Ion, Li-Poly (?) and Ni-Cad, and if it's true that those batteries have
also been the focus of most vehicular-battery-efforts, then I wonder what the
consequences will be of these micro fuel cell efforts? Perhaps the competition
to develop fuel cell powered small devices will lead to progress in developing
fuel cells for larger devices, such as cars.
On Wed, 9 Jul 2003 14:36:38 -0700 (PDT), Green Bean <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
Fuel cells may power cell phones, laptops
By MICHELLE KESSLER
USA TODAY
published: 7/8/2003
Fuel cell technology meant to replace gasoline in cars
might first find a home in laptops and cell phones -
more than doubling battery life.
NEC, Motorola, Toshiba and others are designing fuel
cells to power laptops for five hours or more -
compared with two or three for conventional batteries.
They also could work for cell phones and personal
digital assistants, or PDAs.
Several prototypes, including a fuel cell-powered
laptop from NEC, have been recently unveiled. Early
versions of fuel cell tech products could be sold next
year, most likely in Japan, the companies say. It will
be several years before they are widely available in
the USA - and are easy to use, experts say.
Battery life often holds tech products back, and fuel
cells could provide a boost. Some screens on cell
phones and PDAs, for example, are purposely made dim
to conserve power. Scientists have already squeezed
about 90 percent of the improvements they can from
today's batteries, although they're working on
breakthroughs, says Donald Sadoway, a Massachusetts
Institute of Technology engineering professor.
Fuel cells are like tiny engines that generate power
through chemical reactions. If you need more power,
you put in more "gas" - in most cases, a mixture of
methanol, or wood alcohol, and other chemicals. The
methanol will likely be housed in a replaceable
cartridge, much as printer ink is.
The technology, around for more than a decade, has yet
to take off because it is:
ð Expensive. Most fuel cells use platinum and other
pricey materials. A fuel cell powerful enough to run a
car costs $300,000, says Elton Cairns, a University of
California, Berkeley, engineering professor.
Automakers say they'll build an affordable fuel
cell-powered car by 2010.
Because a laptop uses much less power, cost is less
prohibitive. Start-up Neah Power Systems says, within
several years, laptop fuel cells will wholesale for
about $75 - same as today's batteries.
ð Hard-to-find fuel. Fuel cell companies have a vexing
chicken-or-egg problem. No one wants to sell fuel
until there's demand, and there won't be demand until
fuel is widely available. "You can't just go to the
hardware store and buy (methanol) cartridges," says
John Goodman, an executive with fuel cell component
maker Entegris.
Companies are working on supply plans. Goodman says
someday you'll buy fuel canisters on the same racks as
AA batteries.
ð Flammable. Airlines are unlikely to allow passengers
to carry methanol canisters because of fire dangers,
researchers say. That would be a big blow, because
laptops are frequently used by business travelers.
Companies developing them say the fuel is no more
dangerous than liquor and perfume. They are working
with airlines and government agencies to overcome
concerns.
=====
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