Fuel Cells: Still jam tomorrow

FOCUS ON C A T A L Y S T S A MONTHLY REPORT FROM ALAN E COMYNS OCTOBER 2008

FUEL CELLS: STILL JAM TOMORROW

In this issue

MARKETS AND BUSINESS

2

Rhodium price halved

COMPANY NEWS

2-4

Mitsui Chemicals in Singapore collaboration Oxford Catalysts develops mini-FT process Süd-Chemie in Russian collaboration

NEW PLANTS

4-5

Cellulosic ethanol plant in Butte, MT Evonic to make alkoxides in Mobile

NEW TECHNOLOGY

5-7

Another photocatalytic titania for the visible Mitsui makes benzene and hydrogen from methane and propylene glycol from glycerol

ENVIRONMENT

AN INTERNATIONAL NEWSLETTER MONITORING TECHNICAL AND COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENTS IN THE MANUFACTURE AND USE OF CATALYSTS ISSN 1351–4180

7

New SCR catalyst and reductant

PATENTS

7

BOOKSHELF

8

EVENTS

8

Publication of the 2007 report of the US Fuel Cell Council1, summarised in Fuelcells Bulletin2, reporting the global fuel cells business, reveals steady growth but no breakthroughs. Employment between 2005 and 2006 increased by 22%, sales by 10%, and R&D spending by 4%. The general picture from 2003 to 2006 was of steady growth year by year. The main customers are still the armed forces and organisations requiring uninterruptible supplies. Demonstration projects with cars, buses, and fork lift trucks, despite their undoubted technical success, are still remote from commercialisation. It had been hoped that when laptops fuelled by small cartridges of methanol (or another energy-rich fuel) were permitted on commercial airliners, these devices would soon become available, such is the competition between laptop manufacturers. NEC showed a prototype laptop with a fuel cell in Oct 2004. Ultracell Corp announced a portable device in Aug 2005, but it was for the US Army and very expensive. PolyFuel announced a working prototype in Jul 2008 (Lenovo T40) which it planned to demonstrate to the consumer electronics industry. The International Civil Aviation Organisation permitted the use of laptops with fuel cells in cabins as from 1 Jan 2007 and as cargo as from mid Nov 2007, but the computer industry has not yet responded by providing them to the public. Perhaps Hewlett-Packard’s recent announcement3 of a notebook computer which can run for 24 hours

using a special battery and careful power management explains the apparent current neglect of fuel cells by the portable computer manufacturers. Domestic CHP units are looking more promising. The Australian company Ceramic Fuel Cells has made considerable progress in commercialising its device4. The ultimate raison d’etre for this is that it will provide a market for Australianproduced zircon (as well as profits from the sale of fuel cells!) The company has built a plant in the UK for making the ceramic powder, has a firm agreement for building a fuel cell factory in Germany, has long-term agreements with two established German companies for supplying components, and has development agreements with leading appliance partners and utility companies in Europe and Japan. It aims to be producing units in its German factory in the second half of 2009. The workhorse of the transportation market, the PMFC (proton membrane fuel cell), although being continuously improved, is still much too expensive for most of its intended applications – a perennial challenge to the catalysis and materials communities. Another catalyst formulation for this application, using less platinum, is described below. Alan E. Comyns

1) Press release from: US Fuel Cell Council, 8 Jul 2008 2) Fuel Cells Bulletin, Aug 2008, 1 3) Press release from: Hewlett-Packard, 8 Sep 2008 4) Press release from: Ceramic Fuel Cells Ltd, 28 Aug 2008

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