The methanol fuel cell uses methanol and oxygen to generate power and is one of several technologies vying to replace lithium ion batteries that are commonplace today.
For example, work done at Princeton University in the US and published in 1994 to make the fuel additive methanol from CO2 has more recently been refined and spun into a company called Liquid Light that is aiming to do the same thing.
Miniaturized direct methanol fuel cells are different batteries in that they create power instead of simply storing it.
Fumio Ueno of Toshiba says that once developed, the uses of miniaturized direct methanol fuel cells have endless possibilities.
Publicly traded Mechanical Technology has recruited Gillette to produce methanol fuel cartridges and has an agreement with Samsung Electronics to build prototypes.
The power output is small, orders of magnitude lower than from hydrogen or methanol fuel cells, but the supply and handling of these flammable fuels is avoided.
Toshiba, which displayed methanol fuel cells for music players and other devices at a Japanese trade show in 2005, says it plans to start selling them next year.
Publicly traded Mechanical Technology (nasdaq: MKTY - news - people ) has recruited Gillette to produce methanol fuel cartridges and has an agreement with Samsung Electronics to build prototypes.
When the bus's fuel processing system converts methanol to hydrogen, it also produces carbon dioxide, but at lower levels than diesel engines.
For example, the US Department of Defense has a major program in methanol-based fuel cells.
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Revenue and Customs officers seized nearly 4, 000 litres of illicit fuel, 750 litres of methanol, 200 litres of kerosene, pumps, equipment and business records.
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The company, Air Fuel Syndication, then uses the carbon dioxide and hydrogen to produce methanol which in turn is passed through a gasoline fuel reactor, creating petrol.
One frequent question deals with Compressed Natural Gas or Liquified Natural Gas vehicles (Natural Gas Vehicles or NGV) in comparison with tri-Flex Fuel vehicles ( Gasoline, Ethanol, Methanol) vehicles.
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District magistrate Narayan Swarup Nigam told AFP that methanol, sometimes used as a fuel, had been found in at least 20 victims.
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Recharging the fuel cell will simply require inserting another canister of methanol.
Air Fuel Synthesis build on these methods by turning the methanol into something more like petrol, using processes well entrenched already in the petroleum industry.
Still others would include requiring every car sold in America to be a Flexible Fuel Vehicle, enabling them to run on ethanol, methanol, or gasoline (or a combination thereof), beginning at last the process of weaning this country from its oil addiction that so benefits our enemies in OPEC.
Methanol is used as a blending agent for gasoline fuel according to Rigdon.
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In addition, since they plan to start up the plant using a methanol catalyst they are not expected to produce qualifying renewable fuel in 2010 .
Methanol is a liquid, clean, inexpensive, and potentially domestic, transportation fuel for our new cars that can free us from our dependence on petroleum.
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The authors believe their system could combine the advantages of methanol as a hydrogen carrier and of proton-exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cells for efficient energy production.
Nokia execs including Chief Executive Jorma Ollila indicated in the past that fuel cells were a promising area of development, and in 2004 the company demonstrated a handset powered by methanol, and said it could be available commercially by 2006.
An FFV can use ethanol or methanol or gasoline (or some combination) thanks to a chip and some plastic fittings in the fuel system.
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