http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/ Engadget Comments for Sony creates micro-sized fuel cell system http://www.engadget.com/media/feedlogo.gif http://www.engadget.com en-us Copyright 2008 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/May 4th 2008 11:31AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/
(sorry needed to be said, dont flame me!)]]>May 4th 2008 3:53PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/
Consider your self flamed.]]>May 4th 2008 4:10PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/
I don't know if I should think that this is a great change or not. Wonder if my fuel for my RC cars would get cheaper? :D]]>May 5th 2008 5:26AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/May 5th 2008 5:50PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/May 4th 2008 11:31AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/(If they use bio-methanol)]]>May 4th 2008 11:35AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/May 4th 2008 3:40PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/May 4th 2008 6:19PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/
Correct me if I'm wrong, please!]]>May 4th 2008 7:31PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/May 4th 2008 8:04PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/
What I simply meant was that the means to produce such a fuel was made via plants, which are grown. The last time I checked, that's pretty much the definition of a renewable energy source: "any naturally occurring, theoretically inexhaustible source of energy, as biomass, solar, wind, tidal, wave, and hydroelectric power, that is not derived from fossil or nuclear fuel."

I'm talking from a realistic point of view here. Sure you'd be taking some land away from farming, but guess what? You wouldn't be relying on oil companies to serve you your daily amount of tectonic byproduct!

Solar power?????? Seriously? You don't get much more solar than plants! They use the sun's energy to produce sugar, which we can refine into certain fuels (be it bio-diesel or ethanol or methanol; pick the one which has the most theoretical output of course). And while the plants are growing, they absorb the carbon being outputted from the machines that burn their fuel!

And as for hydrogen, while it may be the most abundant element in the universe, almost none of it exists naturally on Earth. Practically all of it is chemically combined with other elements (e.g. H2O). Guess where they get the hydrogen from? Water. Guess how they do it? They use electricity to separate Hydrogen from Oxygen. Due to the chemical makeup of water, you get about twice as much hydrogen as oxygen from the process, but it takes energy to separate them. And guess where that energy comes from? Fossil fuels.

I don't disagree with everything. I do agree that it would be awesome to put these plots on land unsuitable for food production. And use some of the methane from waste sites to help fertilize the plants.

I hope this clears some things up.
I'm sure you won't hesitate to correct me if I'm wrong.]]>May 4th 2008 8:23PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/
These biofuel solutions, as you state, are at best, carbon-neutral. This is, obviously, better than fossil fuel burning, but its not really feasible at all to clear cut enough forest on the planet to power our needs. You'd be destroying a huge chunk of biodiversity.

With hydrogen fuel cells, presently they would not be carbon neutral, since most places are powered by some form of fossil fuels, however the technology, to me, seems a bit more advanced, less crude, and has the ability, with the development of more clean energy sources, to have no carbon footprint at all.

I watched an interesting article on wind power a week or two ago, and from what I saw, it would be a much more feasible option than biofuels as a fix for the oil addiction. ]]>May 4th 2008 11:29PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/
By the way, cow dung has a higher energy density than hydrogen. If you don't like methanol, I propose you run your phone off of crap as the more feasible alternative to hydrogen.]]>May 5th 2008 1:53PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/
Just one question though - are they going to be of a similar quality to those laptop batteries you supplied?]]>May 4th 2008 11:45AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/never has a simple comment like that made me laugh so hard.

thanks]]>May 4th 2008 12:46PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/May 4th 2008 1:33PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/Wow,I honestly was gonna say something just like that.

But seriously,do we have an answer bout that yet?Cause I personally don't want to put one of those in my psp and have my hand,or more importantly,my pants blow up.]]>May 4th 2008 5:57PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/May 4th 2008 7:08PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/May 4th 2008 11:46AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/May 4th 2008 11:49AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/May 4th 2008 1:33PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/May 4th 2008 2:14PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/May 5th 2008 3:19AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/May 5th 2008 7:15AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/
Until Hydrogen/Methanol/whatever extraction and processing becomes more economical than oil/coal/natural gas, fuel cells will never take off. Excepting, of course, the inevitable brain-dead government legislation that will try and shove the inefficient infrastructure down our throats before it's ready.]]>May 4th 2008 11:58AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/
bcause fuel cells will be able to run out of hydrogen... You can get it just by adding water and plugging a very simple machine at home...]]>May 4th 2008 12:14PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/
The "very simple machine" you're talking about is show, inefficient, and extremely power-consumptive. An electrolysis machine (which is what I assume you are talking about) only has a practical efficiency of maybe 45%.

My point is still valid: we don't need advances in fuel cell technology. Fuel cells have been around for decades and their technology is firmly established and efficient enough for daily use. What we NEED is for someone to develop an electrocatalyst or bioengineered hydrogen-producing microbe or some such in order to facilitate the H2 we will need to support an economy.]]>May 4th 2008 12:42PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/
But doesn't this "conversion" need energy to work? No matter what you're losing energy into this conversion (see laws of thermodynamics)... and that in itself would defeat the purpose.]]>May 4th 2008 1:02PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/May 4th 2008 1:53PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/
We must all spend 100% of our time figuring out how produce the fuel and then we can all spend several years putting together the assemblies that can utilize that fuel. Everyone must work on exactly the same project because obviously thousands of companies cannot be allowed to concentrate on their own individual expertise. We can only concentrate on one thing at a time. You-- Stop working on that cure for cancer. We're working on fuel extraction today.]]>May 4th 2008 3:04PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/
Point taken. However, I still have to wonder at companies who are developing better fuel cells when there is nothing to put in them yet. They are banking, I suppose, on somebody, somewhere, at some point in the foreseeable future perfecting a scalable, economic fuel generation solution.

Or, as I said before, they're just spending this money as a roundabout marketing strategy to make themselves appear "green" and "eco-friendly" and "forward-thinking" to people who are easily swayed by feel-good buzzwords.]]>May 4th 2008 3:27PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/
Sure, you won't be powering a car with this and it doesn't solve any of the numerous environmental or political issues involved with energy production. But, it does solve an issue of making portable devices more useful. It will cost more to buy a few milliliters of ethanol, but the purpose of this is to create a longer-lasting power source. Looking at all the liquor stores around here, I don't think there is a shortage of ethanol production for this small scale.

There's no mention in the linked article about "green energy" or "infrastructure changes". This is about a device that uses a fuel cell to power a battery that can then be integrated into existing portable electronics. I'd be very happy to give up vodka to power my laptop for 8 hours at a time.
]]>May 4th 2008 4:19PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/May 4th 2008 6:38PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/
Just so long as said juice is cheap :) ]]>May 4th 2008 11:58AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/May 4th 2008 2:07PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/
Like most things you can get a cheap 3rd party alternative instead.

A quick google found me a 500ml bottle for £4, less in bulk!

Try finding chemical batteries that provide 50 charges for under a fiver, that's sounding like a pretty darn good deal!]]>May 4th 2008 2:16PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/May 4th 2008 2:26PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/
This is a bad solution. Go solar or nuclear. otherwise, we are facing one crisis or the other.]]>May 4th 2008 12:16PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/May 5th 2008 1:49AMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/
No, that would be coal.]]>May 5th 2008 1:48PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/May 4th 2008 12:16PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/May 4th 2008 3:35PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/May 4th 2008 12:27PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/May 4th 2008 12:29PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/
You would need around 3 L of fuel a year to power a device like this.

On a car, however, that would be enough to drive for around 30 km, which is less than most people drive everyday.

So basically your car uses in a day what your phone will use in a year.]]>May 4th 2008 12:33PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/May 4th 2008 2:10PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/
25 years of spent nuclear fuel isn't a challenge to handle at all. And then we can switch everything over to solar. Fusion a few decades later.]]>May 4th 2008 1:33PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/May 4th 2008 1:34PMhttp://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/04/sony-creates-micro-sized-fuel-cell-system/
It doesn't matter how "green" the power generating infrastructure is; switching to nuclear, solar, wind, geothermal, or anything else isn't going to make the electrolysis process any more efficient. Trying to mass-produce H2 using the current inefficient methods would put tremendous strain on the power grid. Rolling brownouts are still rolling brownouts even if the power you're (not) getting is generated with "green" methods.]]>May 4th 2008 3:35PM