Editor’s Note: The following article was contributed by Dr. Peter Podesser, CEO, SFC Smart Fuel Cell (SFC), based in Germany. SFC manufactures fully-commercialized direct methanol fuel cells (DMFC) for mobile and off-grid power applications serving the leisure, industrial and defense markets and has sold more than 9,000 fuel cells for a wide range of applications. That is truly an astounding number for our industry. A recent presentation on commercialization from SFC can be found on our “Resources” page.
Numerous motor home manufacturers in Europe are now integrating SFC’s EFOY fuel cell system into their RVs to provide auxiliary power for the electronics onboard. These include Rapido SAS, Hymer, Concorde, Dethleffs, Niesmann & Bischoff, Elnagh and La Strada. International leisure accessory distributors such as Trigano Services, Webasto, Movera, Freiko, Frankana and Fritz Berger are also carrying the EFOY product line.
To incorporate fuel cells as standard equipment on motor homes underscores the growing acceptance that DMFCs are experiencing among European “caravanners.”
Explaining the recent decision to include fuel cells in its RVs, Pierre-Luis Guérineau, director of marketing and sales for Rapido, said, “The EFOY fuel cell is the easiest and most environmentally friendly way to reliably ensure full batteries anytime and anywhere.”
One of SFC’s goals is to export this trend across the Atlantic for U.S. RVers who traditionally depend on generators and solar-power units to ensure enough electricity to operate the wide range of appliances in their vehicles. Both of these systems have limitations: solar panels mounted on the RV’s roof require a sufficient supply of sunlight to provide reliable back-up power. Generators emit exhaust fumes and noise, and are banned in many environmentally protected areas, such as national parks.
EFOY fuel cells are specially designed to meet the needs of RVers and others who want off-grid power in hybrid combination with battery and solar-powered systems. In addition to being more dependable than stand-alone battery or solar systems, hybrid systems help eliminate constant upkeep and maintenance costs, in part because a fuel cell can last several days. Fuel cells provide a clean, reliable and virtually silent back-up energy alternative to these traditional off-grid power sources. Connected directly to the RV’s on-board batteries, the EFOY fuel cell system constantly monitors the batteries and automatically produces power to recharge them when their charge drops below a predefined value.
Once the battery is fully charged, the fuel cell returns to standby mode. All this happens without requiring any user intervention, independent of the season, the weather or the time of day, and in a very environmentally friendly way.
The EFOY fuel cell is available in four models with charging capacities between 600 and 1600 Wh per day. This is enough to power a medium-sized RV, and to operate an air conditioner for a few hours per day. A simple example illustrates how much power is actually needed by an electrical device: watching television for three hours consumes 210 watt hours (70 W x 3 h = 210 Wh).
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July 19, 2008 @ 3:15 pm
fc-skeptic says...
SFC (like every fuel cell company so far) loses money on every system it sells. The more systems SFC sells the more money SFC loses. Even at a retail price of €3,108 for a 65W system.
http://www.udomi.de/downloads/udomi-pricelist.pdf
SFC still won’t break even in 2008 “due to considerable increases in the cost of raw materials”.
http://www.ad-hoc-news.de/drucken.html?art_id=15909344
When SFC wrote its business plan and specified its current products, platinum, on which those products are totally dependent, cost < 1/3 of what it does now.
http://www.kitco.com/LFgif/pt1825nyb.gif
Since then the rising price of Pt must have blown SFC’s bill of materials and margin models straight to hell.
Platinum prices are unlikely to go back down to anywhere near $700/oz. any time soon. DMFCs will never be sold profitably unless and until someone comes up with a new catalyst that works better than Pt and is much cheaper than Pt.
July 26, 2008 @ 1:16 am
Greg says...
Greg…
…
August 1, 2008 @ 10:41 am
Sandra says...
fc-skeptic: “DMFCs will never be sold profitably unless and until someone comes up with a new catalyst that works better than Pt and is much cheaper than Pt.”
See an article in today’s news - Gore-Tex can replace platinum in cheaper fuel cells, study shows http://www.delawareonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080801/BUSINESS/808010326/1003
September 18, 2008 @ 7:44 pm
Philip A. Block says...
Have patience good people. It took about 20 years until an affordable automobile was produced (Ford 1908). It took about that amount of time until the first gas station was built. Many auto companies went broke during that same period of time and has continued to the present. Look how many computer companies have gone out of business the past 30 years. Many people worldwide, like Robert Dopp, are working on finding a solution to the H2 challenge. Years ago, when I mentioned to my fellow engineers, or my students in the class room that Fuel Cells would one day power the world, I was told it would never happen. The H2 problem would never be solved,oil companies would never allow it, the Detroit piston heads would fight it, and the power companies wouldn’t want Fuel Cells because it would take away their power to control electric power (that is one of the many reasons for the resurgence of nuclear power–they are afraid of Fuel Cells). Negative thinking does not promote progress. Positive thinking does.
September 25, 2008 @ 4:58 pm
Richard P. Horwitz says...
Please take time to read the following story in today’s New York Times: 9/25/08
“Pumping Hydrogen” in the business section (on line) It explains the details of getting the hydrogen era under way.
September 25, 2008 @ 8:59 pm
Philip A. Block says...
I read the article and it hit the piston on the head. During WWII the oil companies did a tremendous job of supplying oil and new pipelines for the war effort, allowing us to supply our allies and circumvent the use of tankers that were being torpedoed in the Gulf and along the Atlantic coast. The industry and people of this country accomplished things during the war that amazed the world. The atomic bomb was developed at a huge cost, when many of the people working on it weren’t sure it would work. It took some twenty years from the first car till Ford produced one that the average person could afford. It took about the same time till the first gas station was built. Billions have been spent on the space program. Some 90 billion-yes 90 billion has been spent on a nuclear waste disposal area, Yucca Mountain in Nevada, and more on other nuclear waste storage facilities around the country. Proposals are being pushed to resurrect the nuclear power program at a cost of billions, and the hidden costs of more billions for the transmission lines, substations, and associated thousands of acres of land. An obsolete 20th century technology. As quoted from the Times article, 200 billion, to get an infrastructure going seems a small price to pay in comparison. This country has amazed the world with our accomplishments for over 200 years to the point that much of the world hates us for it. Now is the time to realize that we are in a war again for our survival. Government, industry, business, and the people of this country need to pull together and get the job done today, not tomorrow.
October 25, 2008 @ 7:19 pm
Richard Horwitz says...
Have you noticed, none of the candidates mentions FC’s when they talk about new energy sources. There was a copper catalyst for Franklin Fuel Cells, but I believe they were bought by an oil company, and probably will never be heard from again.
November 25, 2008 @ 1:15 am
maryam says...
hello dear i need some information about the efoy system if you send it many thanks
December 2, 2008 @ 3:37 am
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September 25, 2009 @ 7:15 pm
Richard Horwitz says...
The following is importrant even though it’s not about American products:17-Sep-2009ACAL Energy Named as Innovation TrailblazerCommercial potential and technology recognisedby Global Cleantech 100 listingACAL Energy, the leading developer of innovative fuel cell technology, has been named in the ‘Global Cleantech 100’, published by Guardian News and Media and the Cleantech Group. This first ever Global Cleantech listing unveils the most promising clean technology companies on the planet: those which offer the potential for superior performance at lower costs while reducing negative ecological impact. One of only thirteen UK companies listed, ACAL Energy also headed the Guardian’s lead paragraph on UK innovation.The panel chose companies that are currently regarded as having the potential and likelihood to achieve high growth and high market impact. Their thoughts were then combined with insights from the Cleantech Network™, the de facto industry association of international clean technology investors, entrepreneurs, large corporations and other industry insiders. Some 3,500 companies were considered for inclusion in the list.“The first ever Global Cleantech 100 shines a spotlight on which companies and which technology areas the global innovation community is currently most excited about, from a commercial standpoint”, said Richard Youngman, Managing Partner at Cleantech Group.“We are delighted and honored to be recognised as one of the most significant cleantech companies globally”, said Dr S B Cha, CEO of Acal Energy. “Our commercial potential has clearly been recognised as well as our ground-breaking Flowcath® technology.”
December 10, 2009 @ 6:53 pm
Richard Horwitz says...
New hydrogen production method createdAugust 25, 2008 U.S. chemists at Ohio State University say they have developed a catalyst that can very efficiently convert ethanol and other biofuels into hydrogen.Ohio State Professor Umit Ozkan said the new catalyst makes hydrogen from ethanol with 90 percent yield, at a workable temperature and using inexpensive ingredients since it doesn’t contain precious metals, such as platinum or rhodium.Rhodium is used most often for this kind of catalyst and it costs around $9,000 an ounce, Ozkan said. Our catalyst costs around $9 a kilogram.She said the newly developed catalyst could help make the use of hydrogen-powered cars more practical in the future.Our research lends itself to what’s called a ‘distributed production’ strategy. Instead of making hydrogen from biofuel at a centralized facility and transporting it to gas stations, we could use our catalyst inside reactors that are actually located at the gas stations, said Ozkan. So we wouldn’t have to transport or store the hydrogen — we could store the biofuel, and make hydrogen on the spot.Ozkan and doctoral students Hua Song and Lingzhi Zhang presented the research last week in Philadelphia during a meeting of the American Chemical Society.Copyright 2008 by United Press InternationalUPI-1-20080825-14080000-bc-us-catalyst.xml If this is true, then the “Hydrogen Infrastructure” is superficial. The report that I saw on the NPR NEWSHOUR was very startling. The reactor gadget was quite small, not much larger than a coffee can filled with powdered aluminum. Pull up to the gas station in your Honda Clarity and fill up on hydrogen and that’s it. Can you believe it?
December 13, 2009 @ 5:50 pm
Richard Horwitz says...
Sunday, Dec. 13, 2009: While listening to NPR’s Weekend Edition there was this: “Japan Betting On Climate Change Profits” —- It is available (sound - no print) The report explains why Japan is seriously pursuing Green technology. All of their fossil fuels are imported. Much more, and they mentioned Fuel Cells a number of times described an FC production line making them available for the home. The item is available by date.
December 19, 2009 @ 8:35 pm
Richard Horwitz says...
If you have been keeping score as I have, here it is as follows:Ovonics Corp. produces no platinum Fuel CellsAlumiFuel Co. can produce H2 using their portable generator. Infrastructure not needed.LaunchPoint Co. has invented a new and very powerful electric motor.Mascoma Corp. is successfully and economically making Cellulosic Ethanol.Carbon Fiber production has been available for years.I could go on but my point is what’s keeping the FC electric transportation from existance? It’s fine that they propel “Lift Trucks” But that’s not the family car!
February 26, 2010 @ 11:33 pm
Richard Horwitz says...
If you didn’t watch 60 Minutes last Sunday (2/21/10) then you must revisit it on line. Leslie Stahl interviewed the head scientist at Bloom Energy who developed the “Bloom Box” A solid oxide fuel cell stack made for the production of electricity. (what else?) He explains everything - look for it. It was a most exciting show as far as I was concerned. Fuel cells don’t usually get this kind of gee whiz publicity on TV !!!
February 27, 2010 @ 12:05 am
Richard Horwitz says...
A good while ago I was fortunate enough to be invited aboard a Diesel Electric locomotive that had just been repaired. The diesel engine part is usually the thing that needs fixing. This huge engine has nothing to do with directly running things. It only runs the electric generator that makes the electricity for the traction motors. This would be a perfect job for the fuel cell Bloom Box and throw away the polluting Diesel forever.