Micro Fuel Cells

We are in an energy crisis when it comes to our transportation needs, and the micro fuel cell might just be the answer to our problems. Micro fuel cell technology is leading the way towards developing new products that allow nature to provide the model for energy solutions. Conventional batteries are becoming inadequate for the increasing power and complexity of portable electronic devices such as cell phones, laptop computers, and video recorders. Soon there will be a new portable power solution – micro fuel cells.

Fuel cells have traditionally been developed for use in fuel cell vehicles as an alternative to gas-guzzling vehicles. There are other types of products that require energy as well – such as those mentioned above. They need to have effective, clean solutions to regular batteries – solutions that can allow them to run longer and faster without sacrificing performance. That’s where a micro fuel cell can come into being.

The first micro fuel cells developed were designed to be compatible replacements for conventional cellular phone battery packs. Capable of being produced in economical mile-long, thin, printed sheets (much like printed circuits), micro fuel cells may eventually obsolete small batteries.

Better, smaller, less-costly, environmentally safe, and much more efficient, the patented technologies of the methanol-based micro fuel cell are expected to drive a digital cellular telephone on standby for 6 months as opposed to 2 weeks with lithium ion batteries. In addition, the micro fuel cell will, when developed, provide 1 week of talk time instead of the current 5 hours that lithium ion battery-powered cell phones now provide.

The great news is that micro fuel cells could eventually become equivalent to the standard car battery with enough power to start and power a car. Although developers are not confident at this point in research that micro fuel cells will have enough power to match that of a conventional battery, their biggest concern is that using micro fuel cells in cars would be cost prohibitive. However, as the technology is refined and developed, and fuel cell production is optimized, replacing the battery will make economic sense.

Micro fuel cells are designed to run on hydrogen or other natural alternatives to gasoline. That’s actually what all developing fuel cells are designed to run on. In fact, micro fuel cell companies are currently working on technology that will allow the micro fuel cell to replace internal combustion engines completely. That’s an amazing advancement when it comes to alternative fuel technology as well as the new “green” movement that is sweeping the Earth. We say, stand by for further details!