Monday, June 10, 2002
Warm air to issue from boozy notebooks
Posted by Jason Dunn in "NEWS" @ 05:30 PM
http://itnews.com.au/story.cfm?ID=9993
Mark Hansen sent me a link to this surprisingly badly-written article. The topic is fascinating though - fuel cell technology will revolutionize the portable device industry. But three years away? Last year they said it was two years away - looks like they're having more of a problem bringing this to market than they thought.
"Booze fuelled sales reps could find a new drinking partner in their laptop, with Toshiba saying alcohol-powered fuel cells, whose only by product is warm moist air, will be on the market within three years. Speaking at the Mobile and Wireless Live event in Sydney, Toshiba product marketing manager Justin White said 30 ml of methanol would allow a sugar cube sized fuel cell to power a laptop for up to a month. White said fuel cell technology has already been deployed in Japan, where they are used to power vending machines.
Fuel cells work by converting methanol to hydrogen to create electricity. Fuel cell technology appropriate for laptops and PDAs is available today, White said, but commercial deployment is being restricted by cost and approval issues. As an example, the American Federal Aviation Authority, he said, is interested in the possible dangers presented by a Boeing 747 full of fuel cell powered laptops. He admitted that the cost of the units is currently very high, but said this would come down as production increased with take-up. He said the exhaust air is not expected to adversely affect components, saying the moisture could even be used for cooling the CPU."
Mark Hansen sent me a link to this surprisingly badly-written article. The topic is fascinating though - fuel cell technology will revolutionize the portable device industry. But three years away? Last year they said it was two years away - looks like they're having more of a problem bringing this to market than they thought.
"Booze fuelled sales reps could find a new drinking partner in their laptop, with Toshiba saying alcohol-powered fuel cells, whose only by product is warm moist air, will be on the market within three years. Speaking at the Mobile and Wireless Live event in Sydney, Toshiba product marketing manager Justin White said 30 ml of methanol would allow a sugar cube sized fuel cell to power a laptop for up to a month. White said fuel cell technology has already been deployed in Japan, where they are used to power vending machines.
Fuel cells work by converting methanol to hydrogen to create electricity. Fuel cell technology appropriate for laptops and PDAs is available today, White said, but commercial deployment is being restricted by cost and approval issues. As an example, the American Federal Aviation Authority, he said, is interested in the possible dangers presented by a Boeing 747 full of fuel cell powered laptops. He admitted that the cost of the units is currently very high, but said this would come down as production increased with take-up. He said the exhaust air is not expected to adversely affect components, saying the moisture could even be used for cooling the CPU."
