Nanotubes Crank Out Hydrogen

Technology Research News/Fuel Cell Today ^ | 27 January 2005

[thackney]

Storage was solved quite a while ago.

Sodium borohydride

http://www.millenniumcell.com/technology/index.html

[Flightdeck]

"the low energy density"

Depends what you're comparing it to. You're right if you're talking about other hydrocarbon fuels, but H2 has an advantage in energy density (>3000 Wh/l) over Ni/Cd (~400 Wh/l) and even Li/C-CoO2 (~1500 Wh/l) batteries. So if they application is to generate energy for something like a laptop or a video camer, then there might be a market. However, there are some other issues like cost-effectiveness that still make it a tough sell.

[Squawk 8888]

You are correct, I was thinking in terms of hydrocarbons. There is a cost factor for electrical apps though- once you've factored in the energy used to produce, transport and store the hydrogen the advantage over batteries is probably diminished quite a bit. So it all comes down to cost- if (when) you can make a fuel cell that's cheaper than a battery then we'll see a revolution in portable electronics. That's the real ticket here- for transport fuel I don't think hydrocarbons will go away until someone creates a nuclear reactor that's small enough, cheap enough and safe enough to put under the hood of a car.

[Meldrim]

The claim out of Carthage Missouri is that they have their process at 85% efficiency, meaning they can "refine" turkey guts into oil and end up with a "net plus". If they can engineer this down, with a discreet input (manure, municipal water-waste, medical/slaughterhouse waste) their exists the possibility of colocating next to diesel power plants and generating electricity.

[Only1choice____Freedom]

...the watermelons will start condemning it because water vapour is an alleged "greenhouse gas".

I wonder if we could get their hot air classified as a "greenhouse gas?"

[r9etb]

In less-biased engineering terms, we would say that this process for converting sunlight to an alternate form of energy is 5% efficient.

Actually, it's 97% * 5% = 4.9% efficient.... ;-)

[SunkenCiv]

Note: this topic is from 1/31/2005.

Thanks anymouse.

Researchers from Pennsylvania State University have constructed a material made from titanium dioxide nanotubes that is 97 percent efficient at harvesting the ultraviolet portion of the sun's light and 6.8 percent efficient at extracting hydrogen from water.

[SunkenCiv]

Note: this topic is from 1/31/2005. Thanks anymouse. Re-ping from 7 years ago.

[Red Badger]

Re-ping what you sow?.......................