Metal Fuels Ignored | Green Energy News

August 15, 2004 – Vol.9 No.21

METAL FUELS IGNORED.

In all the fuss over hydrogen and hydrogen fuel cells the other fuel cell technology, metal-air fuel cell technology, is largely ignored.

Too bad. Fuel cells using zinc, aluminum, magnesium (and possibly other metals) are already relatively inexpensive and the technology is available at the retail level (in the form of hearing aid and medical device batteries).

The technology too, particularly for zinc-air fuel cells, (or refuelable zinc-air batteries if you like that term better) keeps improving.

Arotech Corporation has announced that they have developed technology that will allow their zinc-air batteries to use commercially available zinc as the sacrificial anode – the fuel – in the cells. The new technology will allow zinc anodes to be recycled using readily available zinc recycling equipment. Recycling turns fully oxidized zinc from a spent cell back into zinc fuel to be used again in the fuel cell/battery to generate electricity.

Arotech says the breakthrough removes a significant barrier-to-entry for their zinc-air technology developed primarily for use in city buses. Prior to this development bus fleet operators would have had to purchase – at some expense – a complete Arotech recycling facility. Now fleets, especially small ones, can have their zinc fuel recycled at any facility that has the capability.

Like hydrogen there are still other challenges for metal fuel cells. Those are finding an elegant and reliable manner to refuel which involves replacement of zinc plates or pellets, as well as finding a way to shut down the fuel cell once the chemical reaction is started. Zinc air fuel cells have long run times, but don’t like to be stopped once running. This isn’t a problem in Arotech’s bus application since city buses are expected to run all day once started.

Arotech’s technology driving the all-electric hybrid bus achieves a range of 145 miles in a stop-and-go test that simulates typical revenue service. Visit Arotech at http://www.arotech.com/ .