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Gold/Mining/Energy : Global Thermoelectric - SOFC Fuel cells (GLE:TSE) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: blue_chip who wrote (4144)	11/19/1999 2:52:00 PM
From: blue_chip	Respond to of 6016

Why the SOFC is TODAY's cont... Had to run fo a short period there. So now we see one of the alternatives for solving some of the warm up problems. I'll add as well, that this is where it starts to get even more attractive vs a pem with a reformer. Both need to warm up, so why not use a SOFC with a cheaper, simpler, more effecient reformer technology and a cell that is cheaper itself to build too?? Do the math, I think maufacturers are waking up. Although they are not abandoning their full fuel cell powered vehicles, I think they are waking up to the fact that for now and for the next while, the hybrid is the way to go. A SOFC fuel cell can be used in pretty well any time of hybrids that are under development today. First we see a switch to the hybrid and a quieting on the part of the automakers (not totally, but hybrids have stolen the forefront)relative to PEM's and then we may just hear of others working the SOFC into their concepts. However, all of the auto makers are now beginning to announce their hybrids. Currently no other SOFC company has made the breakthrough for mobile applications. It will come with time though. Many of the companies including Ford have announced hybrids working with modified IC gasoline engines that can accept a small amount of hydrogen. This hydrogen will come from a gasoline reformer. The full output of the reformer will be fed to the engine. The small amount of hydrogen will make the car operate cleaner and more efficient. Other variations will see the engine combined with electric motors and some batteries for dual operation. In one case, the engine will recharge the batteries, in another it may take over the load under heavy loads. This whole new hybrid concept is where I believe Delphi is going. Maintaining a hydrogen IC engine combined with an auxiliary power unit such as the SOFC and the 42 volt battery system makes sense. The auxiliary power theoretically could fit into almost all hybrid philosophies. The hybrid is possibly the only alternative to make sense for the next 15, 25, 25, 30, or more years. Now look a little deeper into fuel. SOFC can run on fuel that has 10-12 parts of sulphur in it. An SOFC could even run on fuel that has more, however in the interest of the lifespan of the cell values below 12 ppm are are the more desirable. The PEM on the otherhand cannot run on anything over 1/2 ppm of sulphur. Now one factor one must realize is that this advantage depends on the fuel choosen. Depending on the fuel source decides the amount of sulfur in the fuel stream. For residential gas, there is very little sulfur. This is why mercaptan is added, in other gasses usually found in the field prior to processing, the sulfur is very high. If a PEM runs off reformed gasoline, the cost of reforming is higher, if it runs on methanol it is lower, however still more expensive than the SOFC, ans as well with methanol, there is no current distribution system/ infrastructure, again, it would ba asking for some significant changes to get methanol everywhere and for what advantage? If reforming slows down the PEM, if it makes it more expensive than a SOFC system, why stick with it? To me it can be summed up as we spent all this money on the PEM (which I do not think is a waste) however they are designing a system that works ideally in a world many years from now, many many years, IMHO, and a little crow will have to be eaten. CO - Carbon Monoxide A SOFC actually like carbon monoxide and can generate electricity from it. This is another reason why the SOFC could be better suited for today. How does a SOFC produce power from CO? With a SOFC, the oxygen (O) ion travels from the cathode (air side) through the membrane to the anode where it meets with the H ions. The O ion passing through the membrane will be the power path when an external load is connected. Also water is produced at the anode. The same process happens with CO, except that the O ion meets the CO ion and CO2 is produced. Again this additional ion stream produces power with CO2 as the byproduct rather than water. Therefore, no CO is exhausted. This process is unique to SOFCs as opposed to PEMs, because in a PEM, the ion flow is reversed with the H ion traveling from the anode to the cathode where where it meets the O ion and water is produced. Therefore, the PEM cannot utilize the CO as fuel and in fact the CO is a poison and must be stripped out. If a PEM system running with a reformer has to extract CO what will it do with it? The cell cant use it, so I would suspect it would be exhausted to the atmosphere, which is not a good thing, it defeats the purpose of cleaner energy. More to come.....