Hydrogen fuel cell Researchers working out of a metal warehouse in Kakaako will be doing cutting-edge experiments this year on using hydrogen to power cars, buses and more, an idea that has attracted powerful proponents in Washington.
tests get boost
in isle facility
Researchers will find ways to
optimize the alternate fuel sourceBy Diana Leone
dleone@starbulletin.comA team will run tests on individual fuel cells, trying to find the optimal way to get energy out of them for commercial uses to include cars, buses and other vehicles -- eventually up to submarines or support vehicles aboard Navy ships.
What they discover by working with the extremely thin cells, each of which uses compressed hydrogen and oxygen from the air to create electricity, will be used to fine-tune the design of "stacks" of hundreds of the cells that could go into production as soon as 2003.
The Hawaii Fuel Cell Test Facility is a cooperative venture among the University of Hawaii's Natural Energy Institute, UTC Fuel Cells, the U.S. Office of Naval Research and Hawaiian Electric Co.
The project comes at a time when the Bush administration is throwing its support behind a plan to develop hydrogen-based fuel cells to power the cars of the future.
The new effort, announced today in Detroit by Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham, is intended to hasten the replacement of the internal combustion engine.
"Hydrogen will someday be a clean, renewable energy source for Hawaii and the nation," Rick Rocheleau, project manager for the Hawaii Natural Energy Institute, said yesterday at a news conference to announce plans for the opening of the facility.
With the utility providing space, electricity and other support for the project at a Cooke Street site, the project moves from its planning stage to execution.
The technology to generate electricity from hydrogen has been in place as long as the space program. The challenge is getting the cost low enough to make it viable for commercial uses, said Mark Morelli, UTC Fuel Cells vice president for development.
UTC Fuel Cells has 4.7 million hours of experience working with fuel cells over the past 40 years, Morelli said.
The company has hydrogen-powered fuel cells in operation in hospitals, schools, banks, manufacturing plants, military installations and data processing centers, as well as in space shuttles.
The process is so "green" that the only byproduct of the process is water that's good enough for astronauts to drink, Morelli said.
"We applaud the role Hawaii is taking in developing long-term environmentally friendly energy sources," Morelli said. "We can work together to make the hydrogen economy a reality."
The project received $1.6 million in federal funds last year, which are funneled through the Navy, and $2.6 million this year. It will seek $5 million in fiscal 2003-4. At least one UTC Fuel Cell engineer will work with a team of several scientists from the Natural Energy Institute in a lab to be built at the Cooke Street site over the next six months.
U.S. Sen. Dan Inouye of Hawaii, who helped obtain the federal funding, praised the move toward alternative fuels such as hydrogen.
He noted that "in recent years at the root of many of our conflicts you will see fossil fuels," and that the long-term security of the country lies in diversifying.
Inouye said he has confidence in the progress of science. He pointed to huge electric cable spools in the HECO warehouse and recalled how the first computers were similarly large.
He predicted that scientific development would see similar shrinkage in the size of fuel cells.
A 75-kilowatt fuel cell, enough to power a sports utility vehicle, is about the size of four or five standard car batteries.
"I am certain that fuel cells will get this big," he said, his hand curving to describe something about the size of a softball. "This is something all of us have been waiting for."
DETROIT >> Abandoning a Clinton-era effort to boost gas mileage, the Bush administration announced a pact with the auto industry Wednesday to promote the development of pollution-free cars and trucks powered by hydrogen fuel cells. Bush joins automakers
in push for fuel cellsThe administration abandons
effort to boost gas mileageBy Ed Garsten
Associated Press
It will probably take years to mass-produce such automobiles. But Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham said the program will help reduce the nation's dependence on foreign oil and clean up the air.
"The long-term results of this cooperative effort will be cars and trucks that are more efficient, cheaper to operate, pollution-free and competitive in the showroom," Abraham said at the North American International Auto Show.
The plan replaces the Partnership for a New Generation Vehicle program started by the Clinton administration to develop a vehicle with a fuel efficiency of 80 miles per gallon. Abraham said that plan was not cost-effective and did not result in affordable cars.
Just how much money the government will commit to the fuel cell project is undecided, Abraham said. Proposals for the 2003 budget are due in a few weeks.
Fuel cells produce electricity from the chemical reaction that happens when hydrogen is combined with oxygen. The only waste product is water. Fuel cells are already used to provide electricity on space shuttles.
The cells have gained favor because gasoline engines produce carbon dioxide, considered the primary cause of global warming, and other pollutants.
The cost of fuel cells has dropped sharply in recent years. Still, automakers have said 2010 is the earliest date that any sort of mass-market versions of such vehicles could be available.
One expert said the new partnership, called Freedom Cooperative Automotive Research, could accelerate the timetable.
"I think the biggest thing is, this will let the auto industry do what they do best, which is developing technology," said Thaddeus Malesh of market researcher J.D. Power and Associates.
DaimlerChrysler AG plans to market a fuel cell-powered bus by the end of this year and some passenger cars by 2004. Ford Motor Co. also plans a "limited build" of fuel cell vehicles by 2004.
General Motors Corp. chairman Jack Smith said the Clinton plan had focused attention - and money - on efforts to improve fuel efficiency. He added: "As far as we're concerned, this is our highest priority in R and D investment and has been for some time."
Abraham said foreign automakers are welcome to join the partnership.
Hydrogen can be produced from natural gas carried aboard vehicles or from pure hydrogen, which would require development of a hydrogen refueling infrastructure akin to gas stations. The pact between the government and the auto industry will also focus on developing such an infrastructure.
Ross Witschonke, a vice president at Ballard Power Systems Corp., which supplies fuel cells for DaimlerChrysler and Ford, said the partnership will help overcome one of the major obstacles to a "hydrogen society."
"To me the most significant thing about this is the emphasis on the hydrogen infrastructure," he said. "This is a real opportunity to put a lot of investment into the storage, the production, the delivery of hydrogen."
Environmental groups scoffed at the new program, saying it is not so much aimed at developing emission-free fuel cells as it is at holding off legislation to increase fuel economy standards.
"What is needed is regulatory guidance to raise efficiency across the board in cars and light trucks," said John DiCicco, a senior fellow with Environmental Defense.
Ann Mesnikoff of the Sierra Club said: "It's an enormous waste of taxpayer money."
The Clinton plan had pushed industry development of hybrid gasoline-electric cars, now just entering the market. It also focused industry attention on finding ways to improve fuel economy without reducing car size and zip.
Automakers in the program developed prototypes of vehicles capable of getting more than 70 mpg, three times better than most cars now on the road. But mass production was unlikely in the next few years, as had once been expected.
The Bush administration proposed cutting funding for the program a year ago. Congress kept it alive, even as some environmental groups and taxpayer advocates called the program an unnecessary subsidy for the auto industry.