Gold
History Price
World Silver
Price
Silver History Price
World
Platinum Price
Platinum History Price
Featured Item
THE FUTURE OF PLATINUM MINING
Lunar platinum and alcohol fuel cells
Article # : platinum181
Current prototype hydrogen fuel cell automobiles run on what are known as Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells (PEMFCs) and as stated in the linked article “are believed to be the best type of fuel cell… to eventually replace the gasoline and diesel internal combustion engines.” However, a PEMFC requires pure hydrogen to operate and the presence of contaminants can seriously degrade performance. In any event, without a massive hydrogen production and distribution system, hydrogen cars remain a possibility confined to the more distant future. However, alcohol-powered fuel cells (methanol and ethanol) are another possibility. For example, the Direct Methanol Fuel Cell (DMFC) is “still in the early stages of development, but [has] been successfully demonstrated powering mobile phones and laptop computers—potential target end uses in future years. DMFC is similar to the PEMFC in that the electrolyte is a polymer and the charge carrier is the hydrogen ion (proton). However, the liquid methanol (CH3OH) is oxidized in the presence of water at the anode generating CO2, hydrogen ions and the electrons that travel through the external circuit as the electric output of the fuel cell.”
Methanol is a liquid that stores easily but is poisonous if consumed. According to the linked article, one drawback of the DMFC is “that the low-temperature oxidation of methanol to hydrogen ions and carbon dioxide requires a more active catalyst, which typically means a larger quantity of expensive platinum catalyst is required than in conventional PEMFCs.” This disadvantage points directly towards enhanced viability of lunar platinum mining. Future developments also point to the availability of ethanol, as well as methanol, as a fuel source, however additional research and development will be needed before ethanol fuel cells become viable.
Direct methanol fuel cells are commercially available today. A German company, Smart Fuel Cells, currently sells DMFCs for recreational vehicle and offshore yachting use and this review offers detailed information on a commercially available DMFC used to supply house power for upscale motor homes in Europe. In addition, Toshiba has been quote active in the development of small methanol fuel cells to power laptops, camcorders, MP3 players, mobile phones, and countless other handheld electronic devices. It is reported that “latest prototype, with its total weight only 8.5g, is small enough for integration into a wireless headset for mobile phones, but still efficient enough to power an MP3 music player for as long as 20 hours on a single 2cc charge of highly concentrated methanol. The new fuel cell outputs 100 milliwatts of power, and can continue to do so, non-stop, for as long as users top up its integrated fuel tank—a process that is as simple as it is safe.”
Other uses include interest by the US military in DFMC backpacks to offer power to soldiers who must venture far from the electric grids or traditional military vehicles. As described in this report, lugging heavy batteries into the field creates a “logistics burden for dismounted soldiers on missions longer than 24 hours [that] has become quite arduous. As such, the growing need for lightweight, rugged, and environmentally benign soldier power systems has been targeted as an excellent entry market for portable fuel cell systems. The U.S. Army Communications-Electronics Research, Development, and Engineering Center (CERDEC) Fuel Cell Technology Team located at Fort Belvoir, VA has been developing soldier power sources to meet such a need. In March 2005, one of the most advanced, fully integrated direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) systems developed to date was received by CERDEC and a test and evaluation program was initiated.”
Source: thespacereview.com