GM isn't the only one ready for a lot of hydrogen fuel cell cars. Daimler chairman Dieter "Dr. Z" Zetsche believes that the technology for fuel cell vehicles is here today and that vehicles using the hydrogen-for-energy system will be available in five to eight years time. Zetsche also believes that hydrogen fuel cell vehicles will compare favorably with their competition, which we assume means other alternative powertrains like full-electrics and hybrids. One reason he cites as a fuel cell benefit over electric cars is range, suggesting that hydrogen electrics could travel 300 miles on a single tank of hydrogen. One unanswered question, though, is how far will pure electrics be able to go on a single charge in five to eight years time. Still, by refilling a hydrogen tank, the driver gets another 300 miles while it will likely take another full charge for the electric car. Zetsche recognizes that a potential problem area exists regarding the infrastructure that a hydrogen fueling system would require. We remain intrigued by the technology, but recognize that major advancements must be made before jumping on the fuel cell bandwagon. We also believe that other extended-range electric vehicle technologies will allow for many of the same benefits as hydrogen fuel cells.

[Source: Just-Auto (sub. req'd.)]

At the Fuel Cell Pavilion at the Hannover Messe 2008, British company Bac2 has announced that it's introducing blank bipolar plates for polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) fuel cells made from their proprietary polymer, called ElectroPhen. This allows easy prototyping because they're easier to produce and thus 30 percent cheaper than metal plates.

According to Bac2, the plates exceed the U. S. Department of Energy specifications for use in automotive applications. Bac2 also claims that material has a raw state conductivity one billion times higher than commonly used resin binders, which means that no post-processing is needed. You can also adapt it in any shape or with almost any material to make your own fuel cell.

[Source: Bac2]

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Last Spring, when Suzuki and Intelligent Energy announced their partnership, we wondered out loud if fuel cell powered-motorcycles were in the offing. What we got was a very cool concept bike at the Tokyo Motor Show called the Suzuki Crosscage, which did in fact use IE's Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) technology. The bike was clearly just a concept, though.

News comes by way of IE today that they have furthered their partnership with Suzuki. Could we finally start to see bikes like IE's ENV on our roadways? "This is an important next step for our collaboration with Suzuki as we move from a very successful concept toward a range of commercially viable fuel cell motorcycles," said Phil Caldwell, director of business development at Intelligent Energy. With those words, we remain hopeful that this investment and collaboration bears water-emitting fruit in short order.

[Source: Intelligent Energy]

It's always interesting when non-automotive people decide to create a list of top cars in some category. In this case, the business and financial writers over at Forbes decided to pick ten technologically advanced green cars. Some of the selections - the Honda FCX Clarity and the Chevy Volt - seem obvious. The inclusion of four diesel vehicles among the ten is also an interesting choice. However, there are some some strange choices. Why is the Chrysler Aspen hybrid included instead of the Chevy Tahoe, considering that the latter is already in production. Although the new Lincoln MKS and the Hyundai Elantra Touring may be fine cars, there is nothing particularly exceptional about either one. Even the EcoBoost GTDI V-6 coming to the Lincoln in 2009 is not new technology, although Ford is trying to make it mainstream. The Elantra has nothing that any number of other cars already on the market also have. What cars would you include on the list and which would you drop?

[Source: Forbes]

Recently the Wall Street Journal published a story claiming that General Motors and Toyota were both backing off on their fuel cell development efforts. It appears that in spite of quotes from GM Vice Chairman Bob Lutz and Toyota President Katsuaki Watanabe, fuel cells are still seen as the long term solution for on-board energy generation. Toyota communications boss Irv Miller has a new entry on the Open Road blog that corresponds with what Jaycie Chitwood and Bob Carter told ABG last month in Chicago. Toyota is still committed to the technology and has demonstrated the functionality. Their efforts now are focused on cost reduction. The other major issue - one that is outside of Toyota or GM's scope of responsibility - is the fueling infrastructure. It appears likely from what we've heard from multiple companies that widespread hydrogen availability won't happen first in the U.S. Places like China and Norway seem much more interested in making H2 a reality and will probably lead the way. Until that happens Toyota, GM, Ford, Daimler and other will press ahead on the vehicle side of the equation so that they are ready to go when the pumps are.

[Source: Toyota]

A-ha, now we're talking. If you're in the market for a 1/16-scale hydrogen fuel cell car (and didn't see anything you liked in our Top 10 list of green toy cars), take a look at what Corgi's offering. The UK toy company told Marketing Week it has "beaten Detroit to the punch" and will offer a fuel cell car that runs on water for sale. What makes this one special (since there are other such toy cars avaialbe, e.g., the H-Racer and Hydrocar) is that it was designed by Luigi Colani, best known for wearing a lot of white and designing concept vehicles for companies like BMW, Mercedes and Corvetter. This RC car will be unveiled in early February at the Toy Fair Nürnberg. The fuel cells are provided by Horizon Fuel Cell Technologies, a Singapore-based company.

[Source: Marketing News via Winding Road]

The Japanese are taking fuel cells very seriously and here's a figure that confirms this: two out of three fuel cell patent applications from 1998 to 2004 were made by Japanese companies (total patents were 32,209). Compared to the US and Europe, Japan filed 2.5 times more patents than the US and 2.9 times more than Europeans.

More than 15 percent of the filings were made by three Japanese auto manufacturers, Nissan, Toyota and Honda, which filed 1,980, 1,546 and 1,526 applications, respectively.

Regarding the type of technology, most of the applications featured proton-exchange membrane fuel cells (81-83 percent), then solid-oxide fuel cells (10-12 percent) and direct methanol fuel cells (5-7 percent). The three territories in which the study was made showed similar percentages.

Japan is really believing in the hydrogen-based society and is really betting on having fuel cell vehicles in widespread use by 2030. But it's more than cars that are potential users of fuel cell technology; fuel cells can be used for household co-generation systems and portable electronics or for projects that are more fun.

Related:

• Hyundai's i-Blue fuel cells on track for 2012 use in crossover SUV
• European Commission calls for 470 million euro investment into hydrogen cars
• Honda adds to the odd with Tokyo Motor Show Puyo and CR-Z concepts

[Source: Japan for Sustainability]

The sixth annual Clean Energy Trends report has been released which predicts a four-fold increase in the global clean-energy market over the next decade from $55.4 billion in revenues in 2006 to more than $226.5 billion by 2016. Tracked by the report are four benchmark technologies which can all expect their markets to dramatically rise: biofuels, solar, wind, and fuel cells. Key predictions centred around capacity increases for each of the technologies:

• Biofuels up from around 13 billion gallons last year to 50 billion gallons
• Solar up from 2 GW of production to nearly 20 GW
• Wind power up from 15 GW of production to 67 GW

Driving the massive expansion will be increased venture capital funding, political pressure and commitment, along with corporate investment in energy. The report also identifies five trends in clean energy:

• Carbon Finally Has a Price...and a Market
• Biorefineries Begin to Close the Loop
• Advanced Battery Makers Take Charge
• Wal-Mart Becomes a Clean-Energy Market Maker
• Utilities Get Enlightened

Analysis: The movers and shakers are clearly starting to jockey for places in the clean energy market which is likely to outperform most others over the next ten years. Clean energy will be critical to ensuring that the looming plug-in electric vehicle revolution truly offers an environmentally friendly alternative to petroleum fuelled transportation.

Related:

• First new US nuclear plant in three decades approved
• Las Vegas leads US cities in alternative fuel use
• British Columbia sees biofuels as part of 2025 energy self-sufficiency plan

[Source: Clean Edge]