Impact of High Fuel Prices on Rv Travel
Fuel cell is a term heard in the media and it seems to have something to do with running our cars and heating our homes. Hope that the fuel cell can be one of the solutions to our energy needs is talked about but it’s a bit unclear as to what exactly a fuel cell is, how it works and what exactly it can and will do.
In simple terms a fuel cell can be thought of as a battery. A battery converts chemicals inside it into electricity and eventually goes dead. Batteries have all of their chemicals stored inside. Fuel cells have chemicals constantly flowing into them so they never go dead. The majority of fuel cells in use today use hydrogen and oxygen as the chemicals.
The fuel cell combines hydrogen and oxygen to produce electricity with water and heat as the by product. The fuel conversion does not involve combustion; it’s an electrochemical process so it is clean, quiet and two to three times more efficient than combustion.
Our high school chemistry classes taught us that hydrogen is the most plentiful gas in the universe. Hydrogen is similar to natural gas in that is colorless, odorless and tasteless. If you are thinking that natural gas does have an odor remember that something is added to the natural gas in processing to produce an odor so that we know when there is a leak. Hydrogen is the lightest chemical element but it has the highest energy content per unit of weight of all the fuels.
Hydrogen is always combined with other elements such as oxygen and carbon, never found alone. Oil and natural gas are a mix of primarily hydrogen, carbon and oxygen. The hydrogen is extracted from the hydrogen compound to be used to run the fuel cells. Oil companies, like Western Pipeline Corporation, extract natural gas which is then used to produce hydrogen through steam reforming.
There is a lot of fear regarding hydrogen as a fuel source because of safety issues. It has high energy content and must be handled properly. Fear is largely based on the fact that hydrogen is an unknown quantity. People remember the Hindenburg blowing up in 1937 and the threat of the hydrogen bomb. Hydrogen has been used in the chemical, food and electronics industries with an excellent safety track record for years.
Fuel cells provide a direct current that can be used to power almost any type of motor, lights and other types of electrical devices. Automakers are working to commercialize a fuel cell car with expectations of commercial availability by 2010. President Bush announced a $1.2 billion Hydrogen Fuel Initiative in 2003 funded to develop the technology needed for commercially viable hydrogen-powered fuel cells to power cars, trucks, homes and businesses. Fuel cells are used today as stationary generators in hospitals, utility power plants and schools. They are also used in telecommunications, wastewater treatment plants and landfills.
Fuel cells offer a very attractive alternative to oil dependency and their use will continue to grow as the cost of production declines.
Bob Jent is the CEO of Western Pipeline Corporation. Western Pipeline Corp specializes in identifying, acquiring and developing existing, producing reserves on behalf of its individual clients.
Article Source: ArticlesBase.com - Impact of High Fuel Prices on Rv Travel