Sigmund Gronich scoffed at me. I'd just told him that I write for AutoblogGreen and wanted to get his name right for the post about the presentation he and others had just given at the 2006 Fuel Cell Seminar in Honolulu. He chuckled to himself – and to the surrounding delegates from the fuel cell industry – and rolled his eyes. I asked him what he was worried about. He said, "Who knows what you guys write on your blogs." Well, Siggy – can I call you Siggy? – what I wanted to share the information that you and your co-presenters gave with a wider audience. Would that be all right with you? I hope so, because here it is.

Gronich is technology validation manager at the U.S. Department of Energy – Hydrogen, Fuel Cells & Infrastructure Technologies. He led a group of researchers – including Julie Perez, project engineer at Directed Technologies Incorporated, Paul Leiby, senior scientist-environmental sciences division at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and Margo Melendez, senior project Leader at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory – in a presentation called U.S. DOE Scenario Analyses of a Nascent National Hydrogen Transportation System. This presentation was a snapshot of what the DOE understands right now about how the upcoming hydrogen economy might be installed. The scenarios (described below) the teams are looking at are at the recommendation of the National Research Council, and Gronich's team will present their final report to the NRC in March 2007. As if this needs to be said considering the topic, but the hydrogen economy is a work in progress.

(read the rest after the jump)

The 2006 Fuel Cell Seminar will be held at the Hawaii Convention Center in Honolulu on November 13-17. This being the event's 30th anniversary, it is expected to be the largest fuel cell gathering of the year. Over 2,300 participants and 175 exhibitors representing over 36 countries are expected to attend.

Invited speakers will include: Thorsteinn Sigfusson, co-chair of the International Partnership for the Hydrogen Economy; Koji Kuramoto, deputy director of Japan's Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Promotion Office at the Ministry of Science and Technology; Jing Xu, deputy director of China's Ministry of Science and Technology; and Simon Whitehouse, Department for Planning and Infrastructure in Western Australia.

In addition to presentations, the Seminar will be offering a number of short courses including a Fuel Cell Fundamentals Course, a Fuel Cell Systems Course, a Tutorial on Power Conditioning, and a Workshop on Hydrogen Energy Technologies.

More information can be found at the event's website.

[Source: The Fuel Cell Seminar via Pacific Business News]