Where are we now? This is a question that
industries, especially emerging industries, should be required
to ask themselves often. Being forward-looking has its
advantages, but unless an industry knows where it stands, it
will be unable to see very far into its future.
In what will become an annual tracking of
the fuel cell industry in the United States,
PriceWaterhouseCoopers surveyed member companies of the US
Fuel Cell Council on U.S. fuel cell related sales and research
and development (R&D) expenditures from 2001–2002. The
survey confirmed what many analysts have been forecasting—positive
growth in the fuel cell industry.
Between 2001 and 2002, reported fuel cell
related sales in the U.S. increased 11 percent, from $151
million to $167 million. Reported fuel cell related R&D
expenditures in the U.S. increased by 16 percent, from $248
million to $288 million, during those same years. But the
highest percentage increase was in the reported number of fuel
cell jobs in the U.S. In 2001, 2,745 people were employed in
fuel cell related work; that number increased by 19 percent to
3,273 in 2002.
Photo
1
State
of the Technology
Fuel
cells are really a family of technologies. There are five
primary types of fuel cells—alkaline, phosphoric acid,
proton exchange membrane, molten carbonate, and solid oxide.
Different fuel cell types are suited to different
applications. For instance, solid oxide and molten carbonate
fuel cells operate at higher temperatures than the other
types, making them much more attractive for stationary
applications where co-generation is possible.
Since each application is at a different
point on the commercialization timeline, it’s important to
look at each application separately to discuss the status of
development.
Photo
2
Stationary/Distributed
Power Applications
The
big energy story of 2003 was the August blackouts suffered by
most of the northeastern United States and much of southern
Canada. Newspapers reported that fuel cells kept the lights on
for offices, households and the Central Park Police Precinct
during the blackouts, which occurred exactly one month
following the announcement of the availability of IEEE 1547,
the Standard for Interconnecting Distributed Resources with
Electric Power Systems.
Distributed generation technologies—including
fuel cells, renewables, microturbines and other ancillary
services—can be located closer to where the power is needed,
reducing traffic on the already "grid-locked"
superhighways of the electrical distribution system.
Distributed generation technologies can help states begin to
address the challenge of satisfying electrical demand for such
critical loads by providing flexibility in siting these
technologies where they do not require additional high voltage
transmission lines.
Status
of Development
Fuel
cell power plants, built by UTC Fuel Cells, are currently
available in a modular 200-kW size that is
"stackable" depending on load, and can run on
natural gas or waste methane gas, such as from landfills. UTC
Fuel Cells has delivered more than 250 fuel cell power plants
around the world, including the fuel cell that kept the lights
on at the Central Park Police Precinct during the August
blackout.
FuelCell Energy installed a DFC300A fuel
cell power plant that is providing power to the Los Angeles
Department of Water and Power. Based on annual usage, the
250-kW power plant should displace about 1.2 million pounds of
carbon dioxide and 25,000 pounds of sulfur dioxide. FuelCell
Energy also offers 1.5-MW and 3-MW sized fuel cells for use in
stationary applications, utilizing natural gas or waste
methane gas as fuels. FuelCell Energy recently dedicated a
Direct FuelCell® power plant at the AEP Ohio Coal LLC Rose Valley Site, in
Ohio, where it will operate on coalmine methane gas.
Siemens Westinghouse delivered the first
hybrid fuel cell/gas turbine power plant to Southern
California Edison in May 2000. The power plant is being tested
at the National Fuel Cell Research Center in Irvine,
California. Siemens Westinghouse is in the process of building
a fuel cell manufacturing facility near Pittsburgh,
Pennsylvania, with a 250-kW solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) power
plant expected to be its first commercial product.
Fuel cell units for homes and small
commercial applications are in the initial stages of
commercialization in the United States. IdaTech has introduced
two products, the FPM 20 fuel processor and the FCS 1200 fuel
cell system, for commercial and defense markets. IdaTech’s
system can utilize both natural gas and propane as fuel, as
well as liquid hydrocarbons such as methanol.
Long Island Power Authority is
demonstrating 5-kW fuel cell systems built by Plug Power, and
recently announced it will purchase an additional 45 systems
for installation across Long Island; 20 of the systems will
generate on-site heat and power for single or multi-family
residential sites. Plug Power’s GenSys™5C fuel cell system
features standby capability for critical loads.
Avista Labs is marketing three Independence™
fuel cell systems with capacities of 100–5000 watts. The
company received CSA International certification for both its
500-watt and its 1-kW systems, meaning that they comply with
applicable standards for safety and performance. Avista also
recently received approval from CE for its 1-kW system,
indicating that it has met all applicable performance and
safety requirements for the European Union.
Proton Energy Systems recently announced
successful testing of fuel cell prototypes in the 1 to 5-kW
range that can generate their own hydrogen and provide
electricity for 12–24 hours or longer.
Canadian developer Hydrogenics has
standardized the commercial design of its 10-kW HyPM fuel cell
power module, which will drive pilot production of the company’s
product line. The unit can be used for back-up, auxiliary or
standby power, or for propulsion for light mobility electric
vehicles.
Photo
3, Photo 4,
and Photo 5
Transportation
Applications
All
major automakers are working on fuel cell and/or hydrogen
vehicle programs. Current fuel cell demo vehicles are running
on hydrogen, methanol, gasoline, and even sodium borohydride.
But transportation covers more than just cars. Fuel cells are
being demonstrated for a wide variety of mobility
applications.
Status
of Development
Every
auto manufacturer is exploring fuel cells for use in passenger
vehicles. In 2002 and 2003, Honda and Toyota leased fuel cell
vehicles in California and Japan. Nissan expects to lease a
fuel cell vehicle in spring 2004. Through the California Fuel
Cell Partnership, 24 fuel cell vehicles are being
demonstrated, a number that’s expected to triple by 2004.
The partnership also anticipates placing six to seven fuel
cell buses at various transit agencies beginning in 2004. The
installation of hydrogen fueling stations throughout
California is another major task of the partnership, as well
as a goal of California’s new governor, Arnold
Schwarzenegger.
Fuel cell transit bus demonstrations are
ongoing in the United States, Canada, Europe, Japan, China and
Australia. More than 65 buses have been built and demonstrated
to date, according to a November 2003 survey by Fuel Cell
Today.
In the area of heavy-duty vehicle
applications, fuel cells are being examined as auxiliary power
units (APUs) that could provide power to on-board electronics,
or "hotel loads," while a truck’s diesel engine is
shut off, without draining a battery. Freightliner is
demonstrating a Class 8 truck with a fuel cell auxiliary power
unit. A three-year project to develop fuel cell APUs for
diesel trucks was approved by South Coast Air Quality
Management District in 2002.
Nuvera Fuel Cells, AeroVironment, BNSF
Railway Company and others are partnered on a five-year
project to replace a diesel locomotive engine with a 1-MW fuel
cell. The project will receive funding from the U.S. Army’s
Tank-automotive and Armaments Command (TACOM). Fuel cells are
also powering boom lifts, forklifts, golf carts and utility
vehicles in the United States.
Marine transportation is another attractive
application for fuel cells. The U.S. Department of
Transportation (DOT) recently awarded nearly $2.5 million in
funding to the San Francisco Bay Area Water Transit Authority
for construction of a fuel cell-powered ferry that would carry
passengers from Treasure Island to Oakland and downtown San
Francisco. In larger marine applications, Germany’s Navy
boasts the U31, a 212A-class submarine that features a fuel
cell power plant. The U31 is undergoing testing and is
scheduled for commissioning in March 2004.
Portable
Power Applications
Fuel
cells are also receiving a lot of attention as potential
battery replacements for portable electronic devices.
According to the US Fuel Cell Council’s 2003 report Fuel
Cells for Portable Power: Markets, Manufacture and Cost, even a conservative forecast calls for fuel cell penetration
of 6 percent into the worldwide premium battery market by
2007. Recharging fuel cell-powered electronic devices could be
as simple as inserting a small cartridge of methanol (like a
new ink cartridge in a pen), instead of waiting several hours
for a battery to recharge or carrying replacement batteries.
The U.S. Army is very interested in fuel
cells to replace batteries for powering field equipment.
According to the September 2003 issue of National Defense
Magazine, "Inadequate inventories of military
batteries almost led U.S. forces to cease operations or alter
tactics during Operation Iraqi Freedom."
Photo
6, Photo 7,
and Photo 8
Status
of Development
Manufacturers
including Sony, Motorola, Panasonic, Casio, Manhattan
Scientifics and NEC are developing fuel cells for devices
including cellular telephones and handheld computers. Ballard
Power Systems is selling the AirGen™ 1-kW portable fuel cell
power generator, which runs on hydrogen stored in three
canisters that can be replaced while the system is running.
Smart Fuel Cells will begin offering for
sale in 2004 a fuel cell "docking station" for
powering notebooks and other portable electronic devices. The
docking station would provide a notebook with electricity
about three times longer than a conventional battery. Smart
Fuel Cells also plans to market in 2004 the "Marathon
Suitcase by CONSEL," which is a mobile office case with
an integrated fuel cell system.
MTI Micro Fuel Cells is partnered with
Harris Corporation to develop fuel cells for handheld military
radios and are demonstrating a prototype that features an
energy content of 50 watt-hours.
PolyFuel has received an exemption from the
U.S. Department of Transportation for transporting methanol
for fuel cells—up to 24 percent methanol in water solution—on
airplanes. The US Fuel Cell Council is working with DOT and
the United Nations to develop model regulations that would
allow direct-methanol fuel cells aboard passenger aircraft and
rail.
Conclusion
While hurdles such as hydrogen
infrastructure and fuel cell life span still remain to be
addressed, these issues are making progress. The federal
government and states are putting money not only into research
and development, but also into demonstration projects that
will ultimately prove the market-readiness of the technology.
Today, there are markets where consumers are willing to pay a
premium for high-quality, reliable, and highly efficient
energy production technologies. These are the markets that are
adopting fuel cells today, and will enable economies of scale
in manufacturing for future fuel cell products.
Bernadette Geyer is Director of
Outreach Programs for the US Fuel Cell Council, and
edits a monthly and a quarterly newsletter for the
organization. Her articles on fuel cell technology have
appeared in such publications as Sustainable Development
International, Hydrogen & Fuel Cell Letter, and
Standard & Poors' Utilities & Perspectives
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