Fuel cells coming to an electronic device near you
Efficient, powerful and they don’t pollute Laptops among devices to be powered this way
Within two years, the PDA in your pocket, the cellphone next to your ear, or the laptop in your backpack may no longer rely on frustratingly short- lived batteries.
Fuel cells are about to hit the big- time mass market of consumer electronic devices.
“All the major manufacturers are promising fuel- cell- powered devices in either 2006 or 2007,” says John Tak, president of Fuel Cells Canada in Vancouver, the industry association that tracks, lobbies for and represents fuelcell makers.
“That includes Toshiba, Sony, you name it. Cellphones, PDAs and laptops will all come in fuel- cell- powered versions. “Development of greatly improved batteries . . . just hasn’t kept pace with fuel cells,” says Dr. Reza Iravani, professor of electrical engineering at the University of Toronto.
That is not to suggest batteries will no longer play a role in our increasingly mobile world. Look for them in inexpensive items and in expensive highend uses, adds Iravani.
“At the high end, you could have transport trucks providing 10s of megawatts of battery power. They will also fuel homes in critical applications and in areas like storing power generated by wind turbines,” he says. The speed with which fuel cells are overtaking batteries stems from a couple of basic problems with the chemistry involved in generating power, says Blair Tweten, manager of sales and marketing for E-One Moli Energy ( Canada) Ltd. of Maple Ridge, B. C.
His company was formed in 1977 to develop commercial applications from lithium ion research conducted by the University of British Columbia.
Lithium ion batteries have no “ memory,” unlike nickel cadmium batteries. If ni- cads are recharged before being fully drained, they “ remember” that level, which then becomes the base level for recharging in the future.
While Moli has established itself as a leader in lithium ion batteries, including versions powerful enough to drive power tools, the basic chemistry is limited.
“ It is, bottom line, a chemical system,” says Tweten. “ You can only get so much out of chemical reactions.”
Battery-makers face two problems: getting increased power into batteries, and getting it out again, all in conditions safe enough for consumer use.
“ There are stress limits,” says Tweten.
Progress has been made at about a 10 per cent increase in power a year, he says. The latest breakthrough has been in weight. Moli’s new lithium ion technology is about to enable it to reduce a battery strong enough to power a golf cart or a moped, from nine kilograms to about three.
“ Fuel cells may well be the key to sustainable energy,” says Jonathan Hykawy, director of technology research at Fraser Mackenzie Ltd., a Toronto investment firm.
“ They don’t pollute, their main byproduct is water and they can operate on any fuel that has a high concentration of hydrogen. They are also 45- percent more efficient than traditional sources of heat and light.”
Fuel cells take hydrogen and combine it with oxygen. As they do, electrons are released to create electricity.
For the versions expected within the next two years, the hydrogen can come in pressurized tubes similar to those used to fill butane lighters, or from methanol.
Nokia, the Finnish cellphone giant, has been experimenting with methanolfuelled cellphones. Just two millilitres squeezed into the phone’s fuel cell provides about 80 hours of talk time.
Stationary fuel cells are already in use across North America. In Edison and Parsippany, N. J., a pair of Sheraton Hotels draws base power needs from 250kilowatt fuel cells.
In Japan, a Kirin brewery has run on fuel cells since 1992 and, in Toronto, Bell Canada is experimenting with fuel cells as a source of backup power at a telecommunications hub.
While larger versions of mobile fuel cells — those powerful enough to replace internal combustion engines in cars — are still a decade away, this fall’s Tokyo Motor Show featured demonstration models from major carmakers such as General Motors, Toyota and Honda.
“ The automakers say they will roll out early models in 2012 and have full- scale production by 2015,” says Tak.
Full-scale production is crucial to driving the price of fuel cells into the affordable range, says Iravani. Today, fuelpower costs about $ 105 per kilowatt- hour, according to industry estimates.
That’s well down from the $ 100,000 cost of 10 years ago, but still triple the $30 cost the industry feels will make fuel cells commercially viable. Tak says there is one area where fuel cells will replace batteries as early as next year: forklifts.
Forklift makers plan to introduce fuelversions next year. While the cost will be somewhat higher, the savings in productivity could be large enough to justify making the switch.
“ Forklift operators are paid on productivity,” Tak says. “ The problem with battery- powered forklifts is, as the battery wears down, the forklift moves slower and slower. Operators have to decide whether to keep going or return to the charging station and lose productive time.
“ Fuel cells, however, suffer no loss of power as their fuel source diminishes. You can run them at full capacity, right down to the last minute.”