October 13th, 2006 
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One of the major drawbacks of hydrogen fuel cells is the cost. Platinum is used in the fuel cell – and that is a major cost. In a study released by the Department of Energy, total current costs of hydrogen fuel cells is around $225/kW. And for those fuel cells to be competitive, it is estimated that they will need to come down into the $25-$30/kW range. The $225/kW figure sounds very high until you consider that it used to be around $2500/kW in the 1990′s. Researchers at Los Alamos National Laboratory may have found a way to get rid of that expensive platinum once and for all.
Platinum is used in the catalyst process in hydrogen fuel cells. The Los Alamos researchers used an “heteroatomic – polymer structure, instead of platinum materials typically used in fuel cells.” The scientists used a cobalt – polypyrrole – carbon (Co-PPY-XC72) composite that yielded lower electrical result, but much greater stability than past non precious metal attempts. “Besides being made of inexpensive and environmentally benign materials,” said Zelenay, “the chief advantage of these composite catalysts for oxygen reduction is that they can operate in the acidic environment of the polymer electrolyte fuel cell.”
Source: Los Alamos National Laboratory
[tags]hydrogen fuel, cheap hydrogen fuel, new hydrogren fuel cells[/tags]
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