Fuel Cells-Another Emerging Technology

by | Jun 29, 2012 | Industrial Energy & Onsite Utilities, Industry

Jim Cahill

Jim Cahill

Chief Blogger, Social Marketing Leader

Are fuel cells a potential disruptive technology for the global energy markets? Emerson’s Alan Novak, leader of the alternative energy industry team, explores this question in today’s guest post.

Emerson's Alan NovakIn previous posts, we have highlighted a variety of non-crude oil based transportation fuels, which are attractive due to their ability to drop in to the existing transportation fleet. We have also discussed the extremely disruptive impact of shale gas on the global energy market.

Another new technology, fuel cells, which convert hydrogen or natural gas directly to electricity, provide an alternative to both traditional transportation fuels (in electric drive vehicles) and traditional power generation systems while leveraging the abundance of shale gas.

The unique aspect of fuel cells is that they have the potential to impact both the power and transportation fuel markets, providing a route to electric vehicles without first generating the power in a traditional coal, natural gas or nuclear-fueled power plant.

Recent announcements by EBay and Daimler highlight the impact in disparate markets. EBay is planning to power a new data center completely with fuel cells from Bloom Energy.

Bloom uses a technology called a solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) which directly converts natural gas (CH4) into electricity. These cells operate at relatively high temperatures (800-1000 degC) and can directly reform natural gas in to the hydrogen required for operation.

At the same time, Daimler Motors (Mercedes Benz) recently announced the opening of a commercial production facility in Canada for its Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) fuel cells.

Proton exchange membrane fuel cell

Source: Wikipedia

The PEM cells require a pure hydrogen feed so natural gas would have to be re-formed (typically through a steam methane reformer) to produce CO and H2 for fueling.

Fuel Cells are a technology which could have a potentially disruptive effect on two major global energy markets, electric power and transportation fuels. Has this technology finally reached the point where it is economically viable? Only time will tell, but recent announcements indicate it may be moving forward.

Popular Posts

Comments

Follow Us

We invite you to follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and YouTube to stay up to date on the latest news, events and innovations that will help you face and solve your toughest challenges.

Do you want to reuse or translate content?

Just post a link to the entry and send us a quick note so we can share your work. Thank you very much.

Our Global Community

Emerson Exchange 365

The opinions expressed here are the personal opinions of the authors. Content published here is not read or approved by Emerson before it is posted and does not necessarily represent the views and opinions of Emerson.

PHP Code Snippets Powered By : XYZScripts.com