Fuel Cell Technology in the UK

Fuel cell technology is a pollution-free electricity generation technology that is expected to compete with traditional methods of creating and distributing electricity. Fuel cells can be likened to a continuously fuelled battery that operates by using the chemical properties of hydrogen and oxygen to create useable electric current.

The Fuel Cell emerging Market

In order to meet their carbon emission commitments, the UK government is now beginning to introduce legislations in order to stimulate a market for clean and renewable technologies and this has the potential to dramatically change the nature of fuel cell markets.

While the environmental benefits of the technology have long been understood, the commercial case has been much harder to make, both at the investor level and from the perspective of the potential user. This lack of market pull has been a major reason why fuel cell technology has not yet found its way into mass markets; new legislation is expected to change that position and the role of legislators, planners and strategists is now of increasing importance to the fuel cell community.

The Platinum Metals Review based in London, published the Fuel Cell Today Industry review titled “Fuel Cells: Emerging Markets” on 28th January 2009. The review stated that Fuel cell shipments will exceed 5 million units per year by 2013 and reported that 2008 saw shipments of 18,000 units mainly in the portable and stationary sectors, an increase of 50% over the number shipped in 2007. In a series of five year forecasts, the Fuel Cell Today analysts anticipate that fuel cell shipments will substantially increase in key market areas such as uninterruptible power supplies (UPS); combined cooling, heating and power; and fuel cells for portable devices. The Fuel Cell Today analysts also anticipate considerable uptake of fuel cells in key ‘emerging market’ regions such as India, Latin America and the Middle East.

Turning London Waste to Electricity Through Fuel Cell Technology

Elaine Brass reported at the end of April 2009 in Greenwise Business that a consortium of businesses led by new British venture, Waste2Tricity, is bidding to turn London’s 21 million tonnes of rubbish produced annually into electricity by using plasma gasification and fuel cell technology. The consortium included AFC Energy plc, Alter NRG and WSP Environmental who proposed turning municipal solid waste (MSW) –including plastics, paper, cardboard, food and other plant material –  into electrical power by putting it through a plasma gasification chamber, where very high temperatures (+6000°C) would turn it into syngas, a gas mixture that contains varying amounts of carbon monoxide and hydrogen. It would then be turned into electricity by new generation alkaline fuel cells.

In the very near future, environmental and profit conscious companies are going to lead the demand for fuel cell technology (electric car manufacturers, telecom industries, UPS manufacturers etc). The technology is already being used in Japan, thus the proposal by the UK consortium to build a £135 million energy from waste plant capable of converting 250,000 tonnes of municipal solid waste – the most ever to be converted using such technology is a step towards meeting the expected demands. This technology represents a switch in focus from waste management to that of energy generation in an environmentally responsible and profitable way.

The Institute of Mechanical Engineers in a report, claim that the combination of plasma gasification and fuel cells means the net output of electricity to the National Grid could increase by more than 50 per cent compared to existing technologies. It reaffirms the need for an attitude to view waste as a fuel rather than something that needs to be treated

Local Initiatives with a Global Outlook

On the other side of the spectrum, a Sussex based company; Ceres Power is also revolutionising fuel cell technology. The fuel cell they produce emits a constant supply of electricity by using the chemical properties of hydrogen and oxygen to create electrical current. They do not store energy, but convert it from one form to another. Ceres claims its fuel cell technology can reduce carbon emissions cheaper than both solar power and wind turbines.

Their trials have shown that when installed in domestic boiler-type devices, they can cut household electricity bills by 90% and carbon emissions in half.

While using this electrochemical conversion, fuel cells take in hydrogen-rich fuel and oxygen and turn them into electricity and heat. The hydrogen can be derived from gasoline, natural gas, propane or methanol. Peter Bance, the Chief Executive Officer of Ceres Power, believes that this is the “right idea at the right time” (as reported in The Argus, 5 May 2009) and spotted the potential of their fuel cell in emerging markets and new ‘green’ deals. He realises that fuel cells being powered by gas, a fossil fuel which campaigners seek to protect, has also changed their attitudes from abandoning these fuels to embracing them and realising their full potential. In an interview with Sam Thomson, he said “the big electricity companies can either ignore the fact that this is going to happen, which will mean they lose out when it does, or they can join us and exploit the opportunity”. In the past 18 months, Ceres has signed deals with both British Gas and Calor Gas.

Former London Mayor, Ken Livingstone pushed for a boundary in a green direction by ensuring a viable infrastructure for hydrogen and fuel cell technology in the future. The present Mayor, Boris Johnson, recently announced a plan to introduce 100,000 electric cars to the capital and to build an infrastructure of 25,000 charging points in public streets, car parks and shops. A third of this funding would come from the budget of the Greater London Authority (GLA), with the remainder coming from central government.

In the wake of the ‘green new deal’, the exploration of potential collaborative opportunities is expected to yield a greater degree of engagement and discussion between countries like India and the UK, building on the synergies between the two nations and hopefully leading to mutually beneficial outcomes for the development of the fuel cell sector in both countries. Fuel cell technology would lead as an alternative energy for the future. Global partnerships would ensure its effective implementation.
Image courtesy: Victoriabernal via Creative Commons License