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Technology Stocks : Ballard Power -world leader zero-emission PEM fuel cells -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Bradpalm1 who wrote (5106)	3/19/2000 8:03:00 PM
From: Hawkeye	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 5827

Solid, Man, Solid? ECD could make fuel cells safe and practical. by Paul A. Eisenstein Imagine having to haul around an oil refinery everywhere you go just to get your car to run. That?s the challenge facing automotive engineers as they struggle to bring a viable fuel cell-powered car to market later this decade. The fuel cell itself is a surprisingly simple device. Pump in hydrogen on one side, oxygen on the other, and the gases combine to form water vapor?and energy that can be used to run an electric motor. While the fuel cell itself is looking increasingly attractive as the "green" alternative to the Internal Combustion Engine, it?s not likely to see widespread use unless and until engineers can find a practical way to store or produce a steady stream of hydrogen gas to feed the fuel cell. Storing hydrogen in liquid form is impractical, since that means cooling it to nearly absolute zero. Storing it as a compressed gas isn?t much better, since it would be difficult?and potentially dangerous?to carry enough to provide much range. So until now, the onboard reformer has seemed the only practical alternative. A reformer is basically an onboard chemical plant that converts gasoline or methanol into gaseous hydrogen. It?s a complex and costly process that would take up a lot of vehicle space. And it?s still not certain the technology will work on the road as well as it does in the lab. But a fourth form of storage suddenly is emerging as a viable alternative ? and if it proves practical, it could make the fuel cell a reality before the decade is out. Power out of powder The small glass jar sitting on Bob Stempel?s desk doesn?t look like much, certainly not the breakthrough the auto industry has been looking for. It contains a dull gray powder, a finely ground mix of nickel, chromium and vanadium combined to form a compound called a metal hydride. But under the right conditions, the mixture acts almost like a hydrogen magnet. Pump in gaseous hydrogen, and it binds to the hydride mixture. Heat it, and the gas separates, so it can be pumped out to feed a fuel cell. "Essentially, we contain the hydrogen as a solid," explains Stempel, the chairman of Troy, MI-based Energy Conversion Devices. While ECD isn?t the first to come up with hydride storage, it appears to have developed a formula that makes the process practical. ECD?s hydride mixture absorbs 7 percent of its weight in hydrogen gas. In a given space, that means it can hold three times more hydrogen than in compressed gas form, and 50 percent more than in liquid form. Fill a container the size of today?s typical gas tank with this hydride, and you could hold enough hydrogen to double the range of a conventional, gasoline-powered car. General Motors? prototype Precept is an example of a hydride-fueled vehicle. Introduced at the North American International Auto Show, last January, it is a five-passenger midsize sedan "that could deliver (the equivalent of) better than 100 miles per gallon fuel economy performance, just over nine seconds 0-60 mph acceleration, and 500 miles range," said Byron McCormick, co-executive director of GM?s Global Alternative Propulsion Center. "And all of this with no compromises in driving safety, crashworthiness and safe refueling." Solid storage appears to minimize the dangers of fire or explosion inherent in gaseous or liquid hydrogen storage. Hydrides would also, obviously, eliminate the need for an onboard reformer. And that would significantly lower vehicle cost. That doesn?t mean hydride storage comes cheap. "For this to be practical, we would have to keep the cost to $1500" for the entire fuel storage system, estimated Stempel. A former chairman of General Motors Corp., he joined ECD several years ago to help the research firm commercialize its technology. Size still matters Hydride storage alone won?t make the fuel cell viable. Researchers are still working to reduce the size and cost of the fuel cell itself, but breakthroughs are coming at a steady pace. Another challenge would be to come up with a fuel infrastructure. While it?s not difficult to produce hydrogen, there?s currently no easy way to get it to the pump. One possibility would be to place reformers at service stations. Given an efficient method of storing hydrogen onboard a car, it would be more practical and cost effective to convert gasoline, natural gas or methanol into hydrogen at a fixed location. Hydrides could provide another alternative, according to Stempel. Hydrogen could be produced at regional refineries, then shipped to service stations on fuel tankers filled with hydrides. ECD is reportedly negotiating with a major oil company that would like to use its hydrides to ship hydrogen from Iceland, where large quantities of the gas are already being produced. According to Stempel, ECD is discussing several other possible applications for its solid hydrogen storage. One would permit the use of fuel cells for home power generation. Another would store the gas for use in portable camping stoves and lanterns. A third potential customer is developing a miniature fuel cell for powering laptop computers. With hydride storage, Stempel claims the system would be able to run almost indefinitely. While the solid hydrogen storage system has been working well in the lab, real world testing should begin in the coming year. [March 13, 2000]

To: Bradpalm1 who wrote (5106)	3/20/2000 10:11:00 AM
From: Scoobah	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 5827

Monday March 20, 8:05 am Eastern Time Company Press Release SOURCE: DCH Technology, Inc. DCH Technology, Inc. Unveils Enable Fuel Cell Corporation at Germany's Hannover Fair HANNOVER, Germany, March 20 /PRNewswire/ -- DCH Technology, Inc. of Valencia, CA (OTC Bulletin Board: DCHT - news; dcht.com ) is formally unveiling their recently established, wholly owned subsidiary -- the Enable(TM) Fuel Cell Corporation -- this week at the Hannover Fair. The Middleton, Wisconsin subsidiary, led by Vice President and General Manager Stephanie Hoffman, is focused solely on continued development and commercialization of fuel cell power products. ``The industrial world is getting its first look at the technology that will soon provide clean, reliable, on-demand power with user applicability from the individual level on up,' said David Haberman, Chairman of DCH Technology. ``The Enable(TM) Fuel Cell Corporation is aggressively ramping-up to be a leader in providing fuel cells to mass markets and today's applications.' The unique, portable unit on display in Hannover is called the Enable(TM) PFC (Personal Fuel Cell) and is currently being manufactured in pilot quantities for power-product, communications and control companies. Approximately the size of a beverage can and weighing less than two pounds, the PFC unit provides 12 watts of electric power at 12 volts with the same simplicity of a battery, without the weight and environmental issues and limitations. It is also envisioned to be used as an effective recharging technology for batteries minimizing the inherent longevity and recharge issues associated with the long utilized battery technology. ``Our solid-state fuel cell, designed specifically with users in mind, delivers the features that the commercial customer demands,' Haberman said. ``It is part of our strategy to be the first company to provide fuel cells to everyday people for everyday needs. When most of us think of fuel cells we envision space shuttles, urban buses and cars, and large stationary power plants. Yet, we believe fuel cells can also enhance the quality of our individual lives. It is exciting that customers see uses for small, portable fuel cells beyond our own vision.' The Enable(TM) Fuel Cell Corporation is also developing a larger ``active' fuel cell, with increased power output using a proprietary control system. A 5kW unit, known as the Enable(TM) AFC (Application Fuel Cell), will shortly be evaluated by strategic allies, public utilities and energy services companies. ``We are equally excited about our active stack,' Haberman said. ``We're positioning it as a solution for back-up power or power-on-demand service, and we believe that it has several performance advantages over current technology, including durability and weight.' In addition to its fuel cells, DCHT is a leader in the design and manufacture of robust hydrogen sensors(TM) and other hydrogen monitoring devices suitable for industrial safety and process control. DCHT specializes in meeting unique hydrogen safety challenges, such as nuclear power, waste storage and other extreme environment applications. Safe Harbor: Except for historical information contained herein, the statements in this Press Release are forward-looking statements that are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties, which may cause the Company's actual results in the future periods to differ materially from forecasted results. SOURCE: DCH Technology, Inc. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- More Quotes and News: DCH Technology Inc (OTC BB:DCHT.OB - news) Related News Categories: computers, oil/energy -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Help -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright ¸ 2000 Yahoo! All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy - Terms of Service Copyright 2000 PRNewswire. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of PRNewswire content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of PRNewswire. PRNewswire shall not be liable for any errors or delays in the content, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon. Questions or Comments?