Home Made Power | Green Energy News

May 22, 2005 – Vol.10 No.9

HOME-MADE POWER.

It seems unimaginable that 100 years from now people will be getting power for their homes from wires dangling from wooden poles, from wires strung between buildings, or even from cables buried in the ground. It seems possible that people will be generating their own power with energy from sources around them.

Why would this disconnect from the grid to self-generation take place? Environmental concerns. A lower cost for self-generated power than grid power. Improved technology for all kinds of small power generating equipment. And, possibly the desire for independence from the utility companies themselves. Freedom from big business if you will.

Where there is plenty of Sun, roofs will be solar power generators. If it’s windy small wind turbines will sprout from rooftops. But where neither is available people could have their own heat and power cogenerators that wouldn’t be any larger than a small refrigerator. Fuel for the heat and power cogenerator might come from the decay of their own waste, of all kinds.

Whichever heat and power units are available in 100 years (or hopefully less) may depend largely on which technology moves to the forefront in terms of cost and reliability. Today the choices are conventional internal combustion engined cogenerators, Stirling engined cogenerators, and fuel cells.

Right now, given the investment and interest fuel cells are getting. they could be the winner, but we’ll see.

With an infusion of $30 million from EBARA Corporation of Japan over the next four years, Ballard Power Systems is moving forward in its quest to develop and commercialize a one-kilowatt cogenerating system for home use. In the agreement Ballard will use the money for further development of the current one-kilowatt device as well as begin developing a next generation version. For its part in the agreement EBARA will gain the rights to build, service and market the product in Japan for the Japanese market only. Ballard will retain all rights outside of Japan.

While Ballard is still involved in fuel cells for vehicles, fuel cells for homes may come first as they don’t need new infrastructure (they would run on piped-in natural gas initially) and costs might get into the affordable range sooner. Visit Ballard at http://www.ballard.com/