The biggest problem with fuel cells is now the fuel storage issue. Fuel cells function most efficiently (>50%) when supplied with pure hydrogen. Unfortunately, storing large quantities of hydrogen in a compact, lightweight form has proven to be very difficult. Most of the hydrogen storage methods available do not come close the matching the energy density of gasoline. However, chemical hydrides, such as LiH, LiAlH4, LiBH4, NaH, and NaBH4, produce large quantities of pure hydrogen, when reacted with water. The problem with chemical hydrides has been the difficulty in controlling the exothermic reaction. At Trulite Technology, we have developed a simple, fail-safe method for controlling the reaction of chemical hydrides with water, resulting in a pure hydrogen source with the highest, overall energy density of any other available fuel, including gasoline when used in an internal combustion engine. We propose to demonstrate (Phase 1) and manufacture (Phase 2) a large, chemical hydride based hydrogen generator that will provide enough hydrogen to meet the Air Force ground support equipment requirements. Our proposed hydrogen generator will be ideal for many types of fuel cell systems. Systems large enough to power vehicles (cars, motorcycles, scooters, bikes, etc.) are possible. In addition, compact, lightweight designs can be made small enough to power a laptop computer over 20 times longer than a typical Li-ion battery.
Keywords: chemical hydride, proton electrolyte membrane, fuel cell, hydrogen storage
