Samsung shows Direct Methanol Fuel Cell prototype
updated 05:35 pm EDT, Thu April 9, 2009
Samsung DMFC prototype
Samsung SDI and Samsung Electronics on Thursday showed off a working prototype of their Direct Methanol Fuel Cell (DMFC) at the Green Energy Expo. The cell is meant for military use, and is touted to power a soldier's electronic gear for up to 72 hours. The cell weighs 7.7lbs and is rated to provide 1,800Watt-hours of energy. It will be field-tested in 2010, and released for military use later that year if testing is successful.
DMFCs create energy from a chemical reaction between methanol and water in a fuel cell and can therefore be refueled very quickly just by adding these two components to the fuel cell. The technique has been considered a replacement for lithium-ion batteries in notebooks and other handheld devices, and would let these run for days or weeks of continues use before recharges.
Samsung hopes for the new fuel cell technique to translate to home devices following its military development.
