highly efficient hydrogen generation
Newsgroups: sci.energy
From:
Date: Mon, 17 May 2010 22:21:26 -0700 (PDT)
Local: Tues, May 18 2010 1:21 pm
Subject: highly efficient hydrogen generation
An interesting post on physorg.com
I've included the article at the end of this post. And before people
start jumping on the "hydrogen is a net energy loss" kick, please
read
the article. I KNOW that hydrogen requires energy for generation.
The point of the article is that highly efficient and high rate
hydrogen generation can be coupled with other forms of alternative
energy (ie wind or solar) and be used as a storage device which when
taken to scale could be less than the alternatives.
GridShifts Electrolysis Breakthrough Sets New Record for Affordable
Hydrogen Generation
May 17th, 2010 GridShift Incorporated, a Khosla Ventures Green
Portfolio company, today announced that it has developed a
groundbreaking new water electrolysis technique that can produce
hydrogen at a cost of $2.51 per kilogram. This breakthrough
technology
is half the cost of current hydrogen production and effectively makes
hydrogen a more affordable alternative than gasoline at an equivalent
cost of $2.70 per gallon of gasoline.
Over 90 percent of todays hydrogen comes from steam-reformed natural
gas, which produces large amounts of carbon dioxide along with the
hydrogen. Hydrogen made by current electrolysis methods is low-rate
and typically uses platinum catalyzed electrodes that are
prohibitively expensive. GridShift's new water electrolysis technique
uses no precious metals as catalysts and when coupled with a solar
array or wind turbine, it has a zero carbon-footprint.
GridShifts uses a new catalyst comprised of readily available nano-
particles, reducing catalyst costs by up to 97 percent. Platinum is
the most often used catalyst for electrolysis based hydrogen
generation, but at a cost of over $1700 an ounce, it becomes
prohibitive at scale. This newly developed catalyst costs just $58 an
ounce.
Overall, GridShifts new method for hydrogen generation produces four
times more hydrogen per electrode surface area than what is currently
reported for commercial units today. This means that an electrolysis
unit using the GridShift method would produce at least four times
more
fuel in the same sized machine, or require a unit four times smaller
than normal to make the same amount of hydrogen. GridShifts new
electrolysis method finally breaks down the barriers that have kept a
truly green hydrogen highway from extending across the country.
Aside from hydrogen at a fueling station, GridShifts smaller, more
cost effective hydrogen-producing method allows for a wide range of
industrial and vehicle applications. These applications include
ammonia production, hydrogenation of lighter hydrocarbons, home fuel
sources for fuel cell vehicles, load-leveling applications with wind
&
solar installation, efficiency improvement of ICE and more. The
GridShift electrolyzer is also well suited as a drop-in replacement
for machines using more expensive and less efficient electrolysis
units.
Hydrogen is a critical piece of Americas future renewable energy
policy, said Robert Dopp, CEO of GridShift, Inc. Our new water
electrolysis process generates carbon neutral hydrogen that is
cheaper
than gasoline at a fraction of the cost and size of currently
available water electrolysis hydrogen generators. We are now on the
path to a truly viable hydrogen fueled future.
The key to GridShifts process is a new method for coating a complex
three-dimensionally shaped electrode on all surfaces with a unique
combination of nano catalysts that expose the catalysts to the
electrolyte for efficient water electrolysis reactions and is robust
enough to withstand the rigors of electrolysis. The result is an
electrolyzer running as a full cell at 1000 milliamp per cm2 at 80%
energy efficiency. GridShift is on track to reach their goal of 85%
energy efficiency, which is 47 kWh/kgH2 or $2.35 per kg of H2.
Technical details of the development, procedure and the discovery are
available in a whitepaper published at Future research for GridShift's electrolyzer includes the development
of an alkaline fuel cell based on the same design. Ultimately, the
electrolyzer and alkaline fuel cell will be married into a high
efficiency hydrogen flow-cell. More details will be released in
future
whitepapers out of GridShift's high-energy research laboratory.
Put your circuits in the sea By NGEN & MIT
MGMT
"All along the eastern shore
Put your circuits in the sea
This is what the world is for
Making electricity
You can feel it in your mind
Oh you can do it all the time
Plug it in and change the world
You are my electric girl." MGMT
Fuel for Cars, Energy for Homes,
With the advent of nano-extraction techniques, the extraction of
hydrogen from sea water for the use of power generation and fueling
of cars is a step closer. NGEN's proposed conversion of coal and gas
fired power stations to hydrogen and the supply of hydrogen for cars
will revolutionise the worlds energy sector.
MIT's Belcher uses engineered virus to split water
By Christine Peterson, on April 16th, 2010
Angela Belcher and team at MIT have tweaked a bacterial virus to serve
as a scaffolding to:
attract and bind with molecules of a catalyst (the team used iridium
oxide) and a biological pigment (zinc porphyrins). The viruses became
wire-like devices that could very efficiently split the oxygen from
water molecules.
Belcher says that
within two years she expects to have a prototype device that can carry
out the whole process of splitting water into oxygen and hydrogen,
using a self-sustaining and durable system.
This is just a very early taste of what we can expect someday from
more extensively designed molecular machine systems.
-Chris Peterson
Newsgroups: sci.energy
From:
Date: Mon, 17 May 2010 22:21:26 -0700 (PDT)
Local: Tues, May 18 2010 1:21 pm
Subject: highly efficient hydrogen generation
An interesting post on physorg.com
I've included the article at the end of this post. And before people
start jumping on the "hydrogen is a net energy loss" kick, please
read
the article. I KNOW that hydrogen requires energy for generation.
The point of the article is that highly efficient and high rate
hydrogen generation can be coupled with other forms of alternative
energy (ie wind or solar) and be used as a storage device which when
taken to scale could be less than the alternatives.
GridShifts Electrolysis Breakthrough Sets New Record for Affordable
Hydrogen Generation
May 17th, 2010 GridShift Incorporated, a Khosla Ventures Green
Portfolio company, today announced that it has developed a
groundbreaking new water electrolysis technique that can produce
hydrogen at a cost of $2.51 per kilogram. This breakthrough
technology
is half the cost of current hydrogen production and effectively makes
hydrogen a more affordable alternative than gasoline at an equivalent
cost of $2.70 per gallon of gasoline.
Over 90 percent of todays hydrogen comes from steam-reformed natural
gas, which produces large amounts of carbon dioxide along with the
hydrogen. Hydrogen made by current electrolysis methods is low-rate
and typically uses platinum catalyzed electrodes that are
prohibitively expensive. GridShift's new water electrolysis technique
uses no precious metals as catalysts and when coupled with a solar
array or wind turbine, it has a zero carbon-footprint.
GridShifts uses a new catalyst comprised of readily available nano-
particles, reducing catalyst costs by up to 97 percent. Platinum is
the most often used catalyst for electrolysis based hydrogen
generation, but at a cost of over $1700 an ounce, it becomes
prohibitive at scale. This newly developed catalyst costs just $58 an
ounce.
Overall, GridShifts new method for hydrogen generation produces four
times more hydrogen per electrode surface area than what is currently
reported for commercial units today. This means that an electrolysis
unit using the GridShift method would produce at least four times
more
fuel in the same sized machine, or require a unit four times smaller
than normal to make the same amount of hydrogen. GridShifts new
electrolysis method finally breaks down the barriers that have kept a
truly green hydrogen highway from extending across the country.
Aside from hydrogen at a fueling station, GridShifts smaller, more
cost effective hydrogen-producing method allows for a wide range of
industrial and vehicle applications. These applications include
ammonia production, hydrogenation of lighter hydrocarbons, home fuel
sources for fuel cell vehicles, load-leveling applications with wind
&
solar installation, efficiency improvement of ICE and more. The
GridShift electrolyzer is also well suited as a drop-in replacement
for machines using more expensive and less efficient electrolysis
units.
Hydrogen is a critical piece of Americas future renewable energy
policy, said Robert Dopp, CEO of GridShift, Inc. Our new water
electrolysis process generates carbon neutral hydrogen that is
cheaper
than gasoline at a fraction of the cost and size of currently
available water electrolysis hydrogen generators. We are now on the
path to a truly viable hydrogen fueled future.
The key to GridShifts process is a new method for coating a complex
three-dimensionally shaped electrode on all surfaces with a unique
combination of nano catalysts that expose the catalysts to the
electrolyte for efficient water electrolysis reactions and is robust
enough to withstand the rigors of electrolysis. The result is an
electrolyzer running as a full cell at 1000 milliamp per cm2 at 80%
energy efficiency. GridShift is on track to reach their goal of 85%
energy efficiency, which is 47 kWh/kgH2 or $2.35 per kg of H2.
Technical details of the development, procedure and the discovery are
available in a whitepaper published at Future research for GridShift's electrolyzer includes the development
of an alkaline fuel cell based on the same design. Ultimately, the
electrolyzer and alkaline fuel cell will be married into a high
efficiency hydrogen flow-cell. More details will be released in
future
whitepapers out of GridShift's high-energy research laboratory.
Put your circuits in the sea By NGEN & MIT
MGMT
"All along the eastern shore
Put your circuits in the sea
This is what the world is for
Making electricity
You can feel it in your mind
Oh you can do it all the time
Plug it in and change the world
You are my electric girl." MGMT
Fuel for Cars, Energy for Homes,
With the advent of nano-extraction techniques, the extraction of
hydrogen from sea water for the use of power generation and fueling
of cars is a step closer. NGEN's proposed conversion of coal and gas
fired power stations to hydrogen and the supply of hydrogen for cars
will revolutionise the worlds energy sector.
MIT's Belcher uses engineered virus to split water
By Christine Peterson, on April 16th, 2010
Angela Belcher and team at MIT have tweaked a bacterial virus to serve
as a scaffolding to:
attract and bind with molecules of a catalyst (the team used iridium
oxide) and a biological pigment (zinc porphyrins). The viruses became
wire-like devices that could very efficiently split the oxygen from
water molecules.
Belcher says that
within two years she expects to have a prototype device that can carry
out the whole process of splitting water into oxygen and hydrogen,
using a self-sustaining and durable system.
This is just a very early taste of what we can expect someday from
more extensively designed molecular machine systems.
-Chris Peterson
