A Fuel Cell For Everyone | Green Energy News

September 22, 2002 – Vol.7 No.26

A FUEL CELL FOR EVERYONE.

For hydrogen fuel cells to eventually replace internal combustion engines (ICEs) in the world’s automotive fleet they must be cost competitive. The cost of a fuel cell system must be low enough to be installed in the least expensive vehicles on the market. Everyone, eventually, should be able to afford a fuel cell powered car.

If only a small percentage of cars were available with fuel cell powerplants, the reduction of emissions on a global scale would be insignificant. Fuel cell car sales have to reach into the millions each year to have a positive impact on the environment.

The U.S. FreedomCAR program has set a target for automotive fuel cell systems (systems include fuel cell, reformer if necessary and fuel storage, but not electric drive motor) at $45 per kilowatt by 2010. A small car’s 50-kilowatt fuel cell system would then cost $2250, excluding drive motor, controls and gearbox.

In step to meet that goal the Southwest Research Institute has opened a pilot production plant for the high-volume, low-cost production of fuel cell electrodes, a key component of membrane electrode assemblies (MEAs). MEAS are grouped into stacks which make up the core of the fuel cell system. A fuel cell vehicle might have 100 -200 MEAs.

The SwRI production process is aimed at reducing MEA cost to $10 per kilowatt deemed necessary to meet the FreedomCAR target. The process includes a method to deposit a very thin layer of platinum on an electrode. Platinum, at $600 an ounce, must be used sparingly to keep electrode costs down.

SwRI (tm) will make enough MEAs to make one or two stacks which General Motors will assemble. Visit SwRI at http://www.swri.org/ FreedomCAR at http://www.ott.doe.gov/freedom_car.shtml .