Quantum and Boeing join forces to develop hydrogen storage technology
Quantum Fuel Systems has announced that the U. S. Department of Energy has selected their project to develop next-generation hydrogen storage tanks with partner Boeing. Their target is to manufacture hydrogen storage tanks from composite materials that can withstand high pressure but, and here's an idea, remain affordable.
Quantum has expertise in hydrogen systems and storage devices, while Boeing has a long-time tradition of working with composite manufacturing technologies for the aerospace industry. Their goal is a high speed composite processing technique that is cheap enough for mass production. Should they figure such a process out, it will be validated by the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.
[Source: Quantum Technologies]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Tormod Henne 8:36AM (4/02/2008)
Boeing already has the Air Force One Hybrid..
http://science.howstuffworks.com/air-force-one-hybrid2.htm
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Kevin Nugent 7:43PM (4/02/2008)
That is one of the best partnerships i have heard about all year. They both have what each other needs to develop the techonology and can greatly benefit each other .
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Miguel 3:06PM (4/07/2008)
The Hydrogen Education Foundation congratulates the collaboration between Boeing and Quantum Fuel Systems to develop a hydrogen storage system for the use in aviation technologies. In addition, we also congratulate Boeing on the successful flight using fuel cell technologies. As fueling costs continues to increase, the entire transportation industry is searching for alternative fuel solutions. Hydrogen carries the promise to guide us away from using oil, while simultaneously improving our environment by reducing greenhouse gases.
A recent report from two of the leading fuel cell manufacturing companies, Ballard Power Systems and Plug Power, confirms this. The report is readily available at Plug Power’s website at http://www.plugpower.com/news/documents/GHG%20FINAL.pdf.
To learn more about the benefits of hydrogen, please visit www.h2andyou.org.
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Chris M 4:29PM (4/07/2008)
Tormod Henne: the "Hybrid Air Force One" article was a clever April Fools hoax - put that many lead acid batteries in the tail end of a plane, and it would never get off the ground!
Increasing the size of the H2 pressure tanks takes advantage of the "cube root law". Doubling the dimensions of the tank increases the surface area (and the material needed to build it) by 4 times, but increases the volume by 8 times! So by going to extremely large sizes, acceptable for jumbo jets but too large for automotive use, Quantum could bring down the cost per Kg stored. Add in extensive commercial use to amortize the cost, and they might just barely make an economically justified case for aviation H2 fuel cells.
H2 is still a poor choice for automotive fuel.
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Chris M 4:33PM (4/07/2008)
April Fools!
http://science.howstuffworks.com/air-force-one-hybrid.htm
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