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619.501.2713
San Diego, California
California Contractor
Lic #877576 C10

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FAQ's: (Frequently Asked Questions)
 

1. Why Hydrogen?

The United States presently consumes 31% of the world's total oil production, yet possesses only 2% of the world's proven oil reserves. Petroleum imports supply more than 55% of U.S. domestic needs and these imports are projected to increase to more than 68% by 2025. As a nation, we must reduce our dependence on foreign supplies of energy in a manner that is affordable and preserves environmental quality. Our nation can achieve this goal by shifting to a hydrogen-based economy.

CLEAN, EFFICIENT, COST-EFFECTIVE

Hydrogen can be produced from many domestic sources of energy, including fossil fuels, such as natural gas and coal; renewable energy resources, such as solar radiation, wind, and biomass; and nuclear energy. The diversity of hydrogen sources and the energy efficiency benefits of hydrogen fuel cells make the widespread use of hydrogen for transportation and stationary power an important step in protecting the future energy security of the United States. Clean, efficient, and cost-effective, hydrogen production however, is a significant challenge. Hydrogen is not a fuel that exists in nature in a readily usable form, such as oil or coal. It more closely resembles electricity—an energy carrier that must be generated from another fuel source.

Today, natural gas reformation is the cheapest and most common way to produce hydrogen. Even with a 15% energy loss in natural gas reformation, hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are cleaner and more energy efficient than gasoline or gasoline-hybrid vehicles.

The potential of hydrogen's full energy cycle offers a unique opportunity to dramatically reduce the resources with which we both generate and use energy. While natural gas reformation is the most likely route to generate hydrogen now, renewable electrolysis (from solar, wind or biomass sources), nuclear, and/or coal (with sequestration) hold the ultimate promise of the Hydrogen Economy. In fact, while gasoline electric hybrids decrease petroleum use by almost 40% in comparison to today's conventional gasoline engines, hydrogen fuel cell vehicles eliminate the need for petroleum entirely.

PROGRESS MADE IN REDUCING TECHNOLOGY COST

The sheer cost of developing a full-scale hydrogen production, delivery, and utilization system is significant - estimated to be in the hundreds of billions of dollars at a minimum. Notable progress has been made, however, in reducing the cost of hydrogren-related technologies. For example, the cost of fuel cells has been reduced by a factor of ten over the past decade by reducing the use of precious metals in catalysts. The cost of producing hydrogen from natural gas at a refueling station has also dropped by over 25%.

The use of hydrogen power in cars, trucks, homes, and businesses will help reduce America's dependence on foreign oil. Hydrogen can be produced from a diverse mix of domestic, non-petroleum energy resources, such as coal, natural gas, nuclear energy, wind, biomass, and solar energy. Widespread use of hydrogen fuel cells would also significantly increase the energy efficiency of our Nation's economy.

Hydrogen is the key to a cleaner energy future. Fuel cells emit no pollution and no greenhouse gases. Combined with other technologies (such as carbon capture and storage, renewable energy resources, and nuclear energy), fuel cells could help create an emissions-free energy future.

Source: President's Natural Science and Technology Council (NSTC) - Back to top

2. What are the benefits of a hydrogen economy?

Widespread use of hydrogen as an energy source in this country could help address concerns about energy security, global climate change, and air quality. Fuel cells are an important enabling technology for the Hydrogen Future and have the potential to revolutionize the way we power our nation, offering cleaner, more-efficient alternatives to the combustion of gasoline and other fossil fuels. These benefits are explained in more detail below.

Strengthen National Energy Security

Hydrogen and fuel cell technology have the potential to strengthen our national energy security by reducing our dependence on foreign oil. The U.S. uses about 20 million barrels of oil per day, at a cost of about $2 billion a week. Much of this is used to power highway vehicles. In fact, half of the oil used to produce the gasoline you put in your tank is imported.

Hydrogen can be derived from a variety of domestically available primary sources, including fossil fuels, renewables, and nuclear power. This flexibility would make us less dependent upon oil from foreign countries.

Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Greenhouse gases are thought to be responsible for changes in global climate. They trap excess heat from the sun's infrared radiation that would otherwise escape into space, much like a greenhouse is used to trap heat. When we drive our cars, and light, heat, and cool our homes, we generate greenhouse gases. But if we used hydrogen in very high efficiency fuel cells for our transportation and to generate power, we could significantly reduce the GHG emissions - especially if the hydrogen is produced using renewable resources, nuclear power, or clean fossil technologies.

Reduce Air Pollution

The combustion of fossil fuels by electric power plants, vehicles, and other sources is responsible for most of the smog and harmful particulates in the air. Fuel cells powered by pure hydrogen emit no harmful pollutants. Fuel cells that use a reformer to convert fuels such as natural gas, methanol, or gasoline to hydrogen do emit small amounts of air pollutants such as carbon monoxide (CO), although it is much less than the amount produced by the combustion of fossil fuels.

Improve Energy Efficiency

Fuel cells are significantly more energy efficient than combustion-based power generation technologies. A conventional combustion-based power plant typically generates electricity at efficiencies of 33 to 35 percent, while fuel cell plants can generate electricity at efficiencies of up to 60 percent. When fuel cells are used to generate electricity and heat (co-generation), they can reach efficiencies of up to 85 percent. Internal-combustion engines in today's automobiles convert less than 30 percent of the energy in gasoline into power that moves the vehicle. Vehicles using electric motors powered by hydrogen fuel cells are much more energy efficient, utilizing 40-60 percent of the fuel's energy. Even Fuel Cell Vehicles (FCVs) that reform hydrogen from gasoline can use about 40 percent of the energy in the fuel. Hydrogen also has the highest energy content per unit of weight of any known fuel.

Source: US Department of Energy - Back to top

3. Is hydrogen a new fuel?

No, it is not. Hydrogen has been mass-produced for more than 50 years, and in the U.S. alone more than eight million tons are produced annually. It is just that we now have fuel cells capable of using this fuel. - Back to top

4. What are the properties and characteristics of hydrogen?

• Hydrogen is the lightest of all elements. This causes it to be buoyant and to rapidly disperse when released in air, so a leak is quickly diluted and rendered harmless.
• Hydrogen is colorless, odorless and has no taste.
• It is non-toxic and non-poisinous, and there are few significant environmental hazards associated with accidental discharge.
• A hydrogen fire radiates very little heat compared to a petroleum fire.
• For a flammable mixture to exist, a four times higher concentration of hydrogen is required than that of gasoline (4% versus 1%). An electrostatic spark from the human body is just as likely to ignite gasoline as hydrogen at these minimum concentrations.
• Hydrogen has a small molecular size, allowing it to leak more easily through porous materials than other gases at eqivalent pressures. (Courtesy: Plug Power) - Back to top

5. What are the basics of Hydrogen Energy?

Hydrogen is the simplest element; an atom consists of only one proton and one electron. It is also the most plentiful element in the universe. Despite its simplicity and abundance, hydrogen doesn't occur naturally as a gas on the Earth—it is always combined with other elements. Water, for example, is a combination of hydrogen and oxygen (H ² O). Hydrogen is also found in many organic compounds, notably the "hydrocarbons" that make up many of our fuels, such as gasoline, natural gas, methanol, and propane.

Hydrogen can be made by separating it from hydrocarbons by applying heat, a process known as "reforming" hydrogen. Currently, most hydrogen is made this way from natural gas. An electrical current can also be used to separate water into its components of oxygen and hydrogen. Some algae and bacteria, using sunlight as their energy source, even give off hydrogen under certain conditions.

Hydrogen is high in energy, yet an engine that burns pure hydrogen produces almost no pollution. NASA has used liquid hydrogen since the 1970s to propel the space shuttle and other rockets into orbit. Hydrogen fuel cells power the shuttle's electrical systems, producing a clean byproduct—pure water, which the crew drinks. You can think of a fuel cell as a battery that is constantly replenished by adding fuel to it—it never loses its charge.

Fuel cells are a promising technology for use as a source of heat and electricity for buildings, and as an electrical power source for electric vehicles. Although these applications would ideally run off pure hydrogen, in the near term they are likely to be fueled with natural gas, methanol, or even gasoline. Reforming these fuels to create hydrogen will allow the use of much of our current energy infrastructure—gas stations, natural gas pipelines, etc.—while fuel cells are phased in.

In the future, hydrogen could also join electricity as an important energy carrier . An energy carrier stores, moves, and delivers energy in a usable form to consumers. Renewable energy sources, like the sun, can't produce energy all the time. The sun doesn't always shine. But hydrogen can store this energy until it is needed and can be transported to where it is needed.

Some experts think that hydrogen will form the basic energy infrastructure that will power future societies, replacing today's natural gas, oil, coal, and electricity infrastructures. They see a new hydrogen economy to replace our current energy economies, although that vision probably won't happen until far in the future.

Source: US Department of Energy - Back to top

6.  How do hydrogen fuel cells work?

Plug Power has prepared a visual demonstration for you. An additional explanation is below.

• Step 1: Natural gas (or any other hydrogen containing fuel such as propane, keronsene, etc) enters the fuel processor (reformer) where it is converted into a hydrogen rich gas called reformate. If hydrogen is used, this step is not necessary.
• Step 2: The hydrogen or reformate flows to the fuel cell stack where the hydrogen molecules are separated from each other in the presence of a catalyst on the anode side of an electrochemical cell. The protons pass through an impermeable non-conducting membrane to the cathode side of the cell. This membrane is known as a proton exchange membrane or a polymer electrolyte membrane. The electrons pass around the membrane through the electrical load to the cathode side. The hydrogen protons combine with the electrons and oxygen molecules from the air in the presence of the cathode catalyst to form water.
• Step 3: The DC power generated within the fuel cell is sent to the power conditioning module where it is converted into reliable, regulated DC or AC power. (Courtesy: Plug Power) - Back to top

7.  How do I get hydrogen if I do not wish to use a reformer?

Airgas Inc., the largest U.S. distributor of industrial, specialty and medical gases provides hydrogen fuel service for all GenCore^TM fuel cell systems in the United States, no matter what their location. - Back to top

8. What types of fuel cells are there?

Polymer Electolyte Membrane Fuel Cell (PEMFC)

More commonly known as the proton exchange membrane fuel cell or PEM, this is one of the most promising fuel cell types for widespread use. PEMs are exceptionally responsive to varying loads (such as driving) and are increasingly cheap to manufacture. The PEM fuel cell uses an advanced plastic electrolyte (typically Nafion) to shuttle protons from the anode to the cathode. The PEM's solid electolyte is much easier to handle and use than a liquid counterpart, and its low operating temperature allow a quick startup.

A thin platinum catalyst chemically activates the reactions at the electrodes. In the past, the platinum has made these devices prohibitively expensive, but new application technologies have dramatically thinned the platinum layer, allowing these devices to deliver electricity for less than $3000/kW. PEM fuel cells are best suited for 1kW to 100kW applications.

Alkaline Fuel Cell (AFC)

Widely used by the space program, this device was developed by NASA to power the Gemini missions and subsequent Space Shuttle operations. AFCs are very efficient, and discharge only pure water. However, these devices require very pure hydrogen and oxygen, and the electrolyte, alkaline potassium hydroxide, is exceptionally expensive. Since most fuel processing produces some carbon dioxide, which poisons the alkaline catalyst, AFCs will find only niche markets.

Phosphoric Acid Fuel Cell (PAFC)

This configuration has been commercially available since 1992. The PAFC has potential for use in small stationary power-generation systems. They are known for their high reliability, quite operation, and high efficiency—over 80 percent conversion efficiency as a co-generation device. They run at a medium temperature range and can run on impure hydrogen.

Molten Carbonate Fuel Cell (MCFC)

MCFCs use a carbonate-salt-impregnated ceramic matrix as an electrolyte. Because MCFCs operate at 800°F, they are best suited to large stationary applications. Yet they potentially have the most to gain, as they operate at 85 percent efficiency with cogeneration. Many MCFCs are currently undergoing real-world testing, and they are expected to become marketable around 2004. They will be especially useful in hospitals, hotels, or other industrial applications that require electricity and heating (or cooling) around the clock.

Solid Oxide Fuel Cell (SOFC)

These fuel cells are best suited for large-scale stationary power generators that could provide electricity for factories or towns. SOFCs use a prefabricated ceramic sandwich between electrodes. Like MCFCs, they operate at higher temperatures (about 1000°F) and make excellent co-generation devices for industrial applications where high temperature steam is required. These should be commercially competitive in the 2005 to 2007 timeframe.

Source: Rocky Mountain Institute (www.rmi.org) - Back to top

9.  Is hydrogen dangerous?

Much skepticism still exists about the safety of carrying around pure hydrogen in a moving vehicle. Many cite the vivid images of the Hindenburg ablaze, or the 1986 Challenger catastrophe, or the Hydrogen bomb as testaments to the danger of hydrogen. Fortunately, these explosions have little bearing on the safety of hydrogen fuel for your car or home.

Hydrogen vs. Liquid Hydrocarbons

In many ways, hydrogen is a good deal safer than gasoline or diesel. Like any fuel, hydrogen stores significant amounts of energy, and handling it requires certain safety precautions. But hydrogen can be safer than gasoline if it is used properly.

Because it is so light, hydrogen disperses and floats skyward when leaked—it won't pool or soak into clothing like gasoline, just waiting to ignite. (Spilled hydrogen won't soak into the earth and pollute ground water either, or cause an environmental disaster like the Exxon Valdez.)

But what if the hydrogen does somehow ignite in a car? Tests conducted at the College of Engineering at Miami University aimed to find this out. 3000 cubic feet per minute of hydrogen was leaked from a vehicle tank and set alight. Over the course of the burn, temperature sensors inside the vehicle did not measure an increase of more than 1 or 2 degrees centigrade anywhere inside the vehicle. The temperature of the surface of the outside of the vehicle did not climb above that of a vehicle sitting in the sunshine!

This might sound unintuitive. But when a carbon-based fuel like gasoline burns, glowing hot soot particles transfer the heat to its surroundings—potentially including you. But because hydrogen contains no carbon, it burns cleanly without a residue of hot soot, producing little radiant energy. This means that a victim would have to be practically in the flame in order to get burned.

Pressurized hydrogen tanks are made to withstand enormous impacts, and fail gracefully, if at all. Some fear that a hydrogen tank has the potential to explode, and that is possible. But these critics often overlook the greater explosive potential of the gas tanks in their very own cars.

Many real-life tests have demonstrated the safety of pressurized hydrogen storage. Simulated 55 mph crash tests left the car totaled, but the hydrogen tank intact. To prove the safety of its hydrogen vehicles, BMW tested its hydrogen tanks in a series of accident simulations that included collision, fire and tank ruptures. In all cases, the hydrogen cars fared as well as conventional gasoline vehicles. And hydrogen-fueled cars are designed to preclude the possibility of leaked hydrogen collecting within the vehicle.

The Hindenburg Myth

Most hydrogen concerns stem from the Hindenburg disaster of 1937. The hydrogen gas that once filled the Hindenburg zeppelin did burn, but it did so quickly, upwardly, and away from the people below. When the airship was docking, an unexpected electrical discharge ignited the airship's canvas (which was unknowingly treated with two major components of rocket fuel!) The clean hydrogen flames swirled above the occupants of the passenger compartment, and all those who rode the airship down to the ground survived. 35 of the 37 casualties perished from jumping to the ground, and most other injuries resulted from diesel burns.

The Challenger Space Shuttle and the H-bomb

Many people incorrectly associate hydrogen fears with the vividly haunting images of the 1986 Challenger Space Shuttle explosion or the detonation of a hydrogen bomb. Experts agree that the Challenger catastrophe was not caused by hydrogen. And an H-bomb employs tritium, a fundamentally different form of hydrogen, to replicate the same process by which the sun generates energy. This occurs at astronomical temperatures and pressures where nuclear rather than chemical reactions take place.

Handling Hydrogen

From the perspective of safety, storing and transporting hydrogen safely is very similar to handling natural gas or propane, which are currently piped all over the world to industries and homes. A safe hydrogen infrastructure will include a system of detectors to pinpoint leaks, alarms in order notify of leakage, and a system of cut-off points, all of which will be regularly tested.

Five percent of natural gas is already reformed to produce hydrogen for industrial use in petrochemical production, food processing, microchip manufacture and for spacecraft fuel. These industries have already resolved the safety issues around the storage and transportation of hydrogen.

Source: Rocky Mountain Institute (www.rmi.org) - Back to top

10. Does my business really need backup fuel cells?

Fuel cells are attractive in stationary applications for a variety of reasons. They deliver unparalleled fuel efficiencies, especially in Combined Heat & Power (CHP) applications where the waste thermal energy is harvested for HVAC or industrial purposes. The Durst building at 4 Times Square, New York, NY, employs fuel cells to power its base load with these benefits in mind.  In addition, their fuel cells offer a new level of reliability: if a blackout occurs, they will keep essential mechanical components and external landmark signage online. This assurance of highly reliable power led The First National Bank of Omaha to run their mission-critical credit card transaction unit with fuel cells. Their managers know that blackouts aren't just annoying—they're expensive. Hewlett-Packard estimated that a fifteen-minute outage at one chip fabrication plant would cost the company $30 million, or half the plant's power budget for an entire year. In addition to clean, quiet operation, fuel cells offer highly reliable, high-quality electricity.

Source: Rocky Mountain Institute (www.rmi.org) - Back to top

11.  Is it true that hydrogen fuel cells will not be available for 5-10 more years?

As with any new technology, fuel cells are more advanced in some areas than others. For example, the GenCore^TM line of fuel cells (backup power for uninterruptable power supplies, telecommunications, and cable broadband) are available today from Silverwood Energy. The next generation GenSys^TM for residential and light commercial applications will be available in the 2007-08 timeframe. The 5-10 year time frame is usually mentioned when discussing hydrogen powered cars. - Back to top

12.  Are you actually shipping systems?

Yes, Plug Power shipped 150 systems in 2004, 112 of them GenCore^TM and the rest GenSys^TM systems. Over 500 systems have been shipped since 2001. - Back to top

13. What is the current electric power situation in California?

Left-Over effects from the crisis of 2000-2001

According to the San Diego Union newspaper of December 3, 2004, "...state regulators voted to increase electricity bills for San Diego Gas & Electric's business customers by $733 million over the next decade." The article goes on to say "... But the hikes for commercial and industrial customers could be hefty. 'We think it could be about $200 monthly for a large majority of businesses in the region,' said Mitch Mitchell, vice president of public policy for the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce.'" SDG&E customers were not the only ones affected by this ruling. Southern California Edison customers will pay $3.35 Billion and Pacific Gas & Electric customers will pay $3.32 Billion. This money would JUST go to covering the cost of the above market contracts signed by the State of California during the 2000-2001 crisis.

Is another crisis possible?

These last two excerpts from other San Diego Union articles may shed some light on this possibility.

The San Diego Union in an article quoting the Associated Press in its February 12, 2005 Business Section states ".. at a time when California's energy forecast is beginning to cloud again, with tight energy supplies predicted in summer 2006, particularly in Southern California. Last summer, the state broke the all-time record for peak electricity use seven times, even though temperatures were moderate."

On January 28th, 2005, ".. At the urging of regulators who fear outages this summer, San Diego Gas & Electric Co. has come up with a plan that would charge about 1,000 of its largest customers with emergency rates roughly triple current electricity costs". Note: That on March 30, 2005, The San Diego Union reported that an administrative law judge reviewing this plan "...concluded there was insufficient time to implement the programs this summer." and that they should be postphoned until the following summer. The PUC will vote on the issue on April 21, 2005.

How will the newly proposed electric meters affect my bill?

On March 17, 2005 as its lead article, the San Diego Union reported, "San Diego Gas & Electric is proposing to install a new generation of electricity meters that would match customers' bills with the wildly fluctuating rates that power fetches each day.". William Reed, an SDG&E vice president was quoted as saying "Similar to higher-priced peak cellular phone minutes, energy used during certain peak periods would cost more, while energy used outside of those periods would cost less." This is not only an SDG&E issue. Pacific Gas and Electric Company, which services the San Francsco Bay Area is making a similar proposal to the PUC, while Southern California Edision, is examing the idea and looking for lower cost meters." - Back to top

14. How much does a fuel cell system cost?

A 5kW GenCore^TM system costs between $15,000 to $29,000, depending on options and application. All systems have to be individually quoted. - Back to top

15. Who would install my fuel cell?

Silverwood Energy is a licensed California General Contractor #877576-C10. It would be installed by Silverwood's factory trained expects. - Back to top

16. Can I attach a fuel cell to my existing Photovoltaic Solar System?

Yes and no. If you wish to use the fuel cell as an emergency backup system for your photovoltaic system, there is no problem. If you wish to use it as a prime power generator when your solar system is not generating electricity, as a practical matter not yet.

A GenCore^TM fuel cell can be attached to your existing system to provide emergency power in the case of the grid dropping. It will provide a seamless transition that you will not even notice. The GenCore^TM unit produces DC voltage that would be input to your existing inverter or a separate inverter if necessary. When the grid came back up, the unit would again seamlessly shut itself down. For more information on this option, click here.

There are two ways to use a hydrogen fuel cell as a prime power generator. The first method is to have a fuel such as natural gas or propane reformed to provide the fuel cell with hydrogen. This system could run whenever the solar system was not generating power. Plug Power will have a GenSys^TM system available at the end of 2007 to provide this option. For more information, click here.

The second method runs on just solar power and water and is viable in an off-grid configuration. These systems run by having the solar system generate the electricity that is used by an Electrolyzer (where water is the input source) to separate out the hydrogen and then send it to the fuel cell as fuel. However, it currently takes more energy to create the hydrogen fuel, than would be generated by the fuel cell as an end product. This could only become a financially viable option when the hydrogen fuel is used in a timeshift system (ie: solar produces electricity/hydrogen during the day and the fuel cell uses the hydrogen to produce electricity at night or in a low power situation if backup batteries were incorporated into the system) or creating fuel for your hydrogen powered car. Currently, electrolyzers are quite expensive which makes this option viable in only specific situations. As a full service energy company, Silverwood can design, build and install this complete system for you. - Back to top

17. What do grid-tied, grid-parallel, and stand-alone mean when applied to fuel cells?

All these terms refer to a fuel cells relationship with the electric grid maintained by your local utility company.

Grid-Tied - attached to the utility company's power grid
Grid-Parallel - attached to the utility company's power grid (same as grid-tied)
Stand-alone (or Off Grid) - NOT attached to the utility company's power grid

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