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Microcap & Penny Stocks : MECHANICAL TECHNOLOGY (MKTY) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: billkirn who wrote (358)	8/3/1999 8:26:00 AM
From: Fun-da-Mental#1	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 542

NREL: "The light produced electricity in the cell, and the electricity dissociated the water into hydrogen and oxygen at 12% efficiency." That means 12% of the light energy was converted into chemical energy (hydrogen and oxygen). Unfortunately it's hard to get enough sunlight to satisfy our voracious energy needs, even at 100% efficiency, unless you live in the Southwest desert. Fun-da-Mental

To: billkirn who wrote (358)	8/3/1999 11:23:00 AM
From: Tom Genna	Respond to of 542

To the group: some recent news from gov't copy: FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE July 28, 1999 NEWS MEDIA CONTACT: Michael Terwilliger, 202/586-5806 Microtechnology Brings Automotive Fuel Cells One Step Closer The Department of Energy's goal of developing highly efficient, low or zero emission automobile fuel cells is closer to realization due to work at the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. Researchers at the Richland, Wash., laboratory have demonstrated successfully the technical feasibility of an ultra compact fuel reformer that converts readily available fuel, such as gasoline, into hydrogen to power a fuel cell. In laboratory tests, engineers have shown that one of the most critical components of the fuel reformer can now be made at least 1/10 the size of current units without sacrificing efficiency. The concept of powering electric cars with compact fuel cells is not new. However, most fuel cells require hydrogen to generate electricity. Hydrogen is not available at the pump, and the systems required to generate and store it on a vehicle have been too large and costly to be practical. This demonstration shows that efficient steam reforming systems that can fit within cars powered by fuel cells can be made. The heart of the fuel reformer is a microchannel reactor and microchannel heat exchanger that provides the energy to run the reaction from the small amount of unreacted fuel that leaves the fuel cell. In the fuel processor, the chemical reactions are sped up and intensified because they take place within machined microchannels about the width of three strands of hair. This breakthrough in reducing the size of the hardware also offers benefits to consumers by reducing the price of fuel cell technology. "This microtechnology is significant," said Dan Reicher, Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. "Not only will it reduce the size and weight of on-board fuel reformers, but it also will decrease fuel cell system start-up time. DOE is funding this research as part of its commitment to advance the development of clean and efficient vehicles that will reduce energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions while maintaining the safety, comfort and convenience that consumers expect." DOE hopes to validate automobile fuel cell systems that meet customer cost and performance expectations by 2004. Research to develop the reactors and heat exchangers needed to complete the entire automobile fuel processing system is conducted through the Partnership for a New Generation of Vehicles (PNGV), a collaboration between the Federal Government and the United States Council for Automotive Research. The PNGV links the research efforts of seven Federal agencies and associated national laboratories with those of U.S. automakers to develop technologies for a new generation of energy efficient and environmentally friendly vehicles. Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, one of the DOE's nine multiprogram national labs, conducts research in the fields of environment, energy, health sciences and national security. Battelle, based in Columbus, Ohio, has operated the laboratory for DOE since 1965. The microchannel architecture and its catalysts are proprietary to Battelle and part of a greater effort to develop methods to improve chemical processes and reduce the size of processing systems for many applications. Engineers at the lab have used the technology to make chemical process components such as heat exchangers, reactors and chemical separators 10 to 100 times smaller without reducing the effectiveness of the process. - DOE -