On February 23 the German Minister for Environment presented the "Environmental Report 2000" in Berlin. There, Jürgen Trittin emphasized that despite positive tendencies in reducing CO2 emissions, there was no way for Germany to evade comprehensive restructuring of the energy sector. Wind power, renewable energies and co-generation in particular had to be supported in order to reach the national goal of a 25% reduction in CO2 by 2005 (compared with 1990). According to the data presented, CO2 emissions increased in road, railroad and air traffic by ten percent between 1990 and 1999. This was negatively influenced by an increase in traffic which compensates the technological achievements for reducing climate-destroying emissions.

A model concept developed by German company Alternet meets the challenge. In the Eifel region wind turbines will be combined with biomass power plants to garantuee seamless, clean energy supply around the clock. CEO Andreas Knaf thus answers one of the wind energy critics' most frequently brought up sore points even when the turbines stand still during windless periods, production of electricity and heat is carried on by the biomass block heating power system.

Another promising solution for power supply independet from the public net is offered by P&T Technology AG from Hamburg, exhibitor at Hydrogen Expo in October. The core element of the plant is that the energy generated from wind power is stored in hydrogen. When lack of wind occurs, electricity is produced from the stored hydrogen, while at the same time drinking water is reprocessed. This enables continuous, regenerative power and drinking water supply beyond centralized public systems.

Two engineers from Northern Germany occupied themselves with finding a solution to the problem of secure foundation of offshore wind power plants. With their new technology Dirk Schönefeldt and Conrad Hansen ran into open doors at the German Wind Energy Funding Association (FGW). Instead of anchoring with monopiles, the concept is based on mounting a multiple-beam-construction onto three piles rammed into the ground. The beam construction rests over the waterline, which makes costly underwater work no longer necessary. New large wind power plants with up to five megawatts performance can be grounded in waters as deep as 35 meters, using this technology. According to the FGW, there are currently 16 wind power plants projects "in the pipeline" in Germany.

For the first time in Germany, the Ford Motor Company presented their latest fuel cell vehicle in Berlin. On February 14th Minister for Traffic Kurt Bodewig, BUND Executive Director Dr. Gerhard Timm, the Norwegian Ambassador, and several Members of Parliament and journalists came to the joint Scandinavian embassy to take a look at the "mobility of the future". The Ford Focus FCV has a hydrogen tank for gaseous fuel (250 bar) in the rear. The fuel is fed to the new fuel cell (Mark 900) of Canadian technology partner Ballard Power Systems, where it is transformed into energy to power the electric motor. In addition to the hydrogen driven Focus Ford presented the complete range of green vehicles to be seen, test and felt. The Norwegian ambassador, who often drives a TH!NK himself, quite appropriately called this assortment of automobiles a "Car Catwalk". The TH!INK City is a short (2,99 meter) electric vehicle specifically suited for city traffic. An extremely clean Ford Fiesta Diesel (120 g CO2 per km) and a Ford Galaxy with CNG-propulsion as well as a Ford Focus with Ethanol-propulsion were also showcased. Besides this the company presented an e-Ka, a battery driven research-car already introduced in June 2000. Dr. Timm of the BUND welcomed the progress in alternative propulsion technologies. At the same time he said that it took more than building "green cars". Alternative mobility concepts such as car-sharing also had to be pursued. Minister for Traffic Kurt Bodewig called the fuel cell vehicle an "intelligent solution" and happily did some test driving with the Focus FCV.

Record breaking - SOFC-technology gets new impetus

The Jülich research institute for the first time broke the "1000-watt-record" for solid oxide fuel cells, reaching maximal power performance of 1,6 kW. "Other researchers reached a similar power level before, but they used more and smaller fuel cells." The stack manufactured by Sulzer-Hexis from Switzerland for example combines 70 single cells (1 kW), whereby the stack in Jülich needs only ten cells for 1,6 kW. Dr. Klaus Bonhoff, head of the fuel cell project, said that their single cells' size of 25 cm x 25 cm (MEA = Membrane Electrode Assembly) was the worldwide premium for planar cells. For thermodynamic reasons cells the size of 20 cm x 20 cm were used for the ten-cell stacks. Further to building energy supply as one field of application, Bonhoff pointed to possible use in vehicles for onboard power supply. "It would be possible to save 20% fuel if the light machine was replaced by fuel cells." Bonhoff added: "By 2003 we want to be able to generate 20 kW with our new SOFC design." The new construction is based on a thinner electrolyte layer and less expensive special materials. Thereby the costs as well as the operation temperature could be reduced. A lower operating temperature (800 °C instead of 1.000 °C) leads to a slower aging process because the creation of oxide layers is reduced.

55 small power stations - Fuel Cell Co-operation

German power supplier Energie Baden-Württemberg (EnBW) and Swiss technology corporation Sulzer-Hexis AG recently signed a partnership agreement in Karlsruhe. The two companies want to offer fuel cell systems for private household energy supply. Their objective is to develop a system with 1 kW electric power and thermodynamic power of 3 kW (together with an additional 25 kW burner). According to the agreement Sulzer-Hexis will be responsible for fuel cell unit research, while EnBW looks after installation and maintenance. To begin with, 55 of these power units will be delivered to EnBW partners. Official market entry is to follow soon. The solid oxide fuel cells will use natural gas as the energy carrier, which is reformed to a gas with high hydrogen percentage. In contrast to this small power unit, the SOFC system on the Marbach power plant site will reach performance of approx. 1 MW to supply 2.000 inhabitants with electricity by 2002 (including the Würth/EnBW solar plant). This project was implemented at the end of last year, construction shall be finished next year. The plant will be Europe's largest fuel cell power unit.

RWE debut - Topping-out ceremony for fuel cell pavilion

The topping-out ceremony for the first RWE fuel cell pavilion took place in the presence of North Rhine Westphalia Prime Minister Wolfgang Clement in mid of February. This building will harbour a Siemens Westinghouse demonstration unit (SOFC, 100 kW) to take up operation in spring. A molten carbonate fuel cell (MCFC) of Motoren- and Turbinen-Union Friedrichshafen (MTU) with an energy output of 300 kW will follow at end of this year. A world premiere is planned for spring next year by RWE, Thyssengas, Siemens Westinghouse (USA) und Enel (Italy). For the first time, an SOFC with integrated gas turbine will go into operation and will feed electricity in the public power supply system.

Fighting dust with hydrogen - FC-Vacuum Cleaner and -Bicycles

Fuel cells suited for laptops and cellular phones made the news already. The latest possible application is in vacuum cleaners. The prototype is a lightweight, compact model, which is cordlessly powered by hydrogen from two pressure bottles. Two fuel cell stacks power the cleaner with 1 kW. This project was initiated by Manhattan Scientifics Inc., Electrolux LLC and Lunar Design, all based in the US. In conjunction with Aprilia, Manhattan Scientifics also develops a fuel cell powered bicycle ("Hydrocycle TM"), recently introduced at the Bologna Motor Show in December 2000 in Italy. Its predecessor's NiMH battery was replaced by a fuel cell system consisting of a Novars fuel cell and a two-liter carbon fiber reinforced pressure vessel containing hydrogen, which is located behind the bicycle seat. The fuel cell stack which powers the bike weighs only 780 grams and delivers 670 watts to a hub motor. This provides the cyclist with a driving range of up to 70-100 km (flat surface) at a top speed of 30 km/h. In contrast to the former rather long battery loading time, refueling here takes only seconds.

Green fuel from the sea - Hydrogen filling station & offshore wind parks

A hydrogen filling station for public traffic will be built in Bremerhaven/Germany, with only green energy used for hydrogen production. Inauguration is anticipated for early next year. Partners for this project are local traffic company Energiekontor AG, the City of Bremen, as well as several local companies. It is planned to use renewable energies exclusively, for example from the offshore wind power station in the Wadden Sea.

Question: Which hydrogen or fuel cell projects are currently being pursued at HEW?

Holger Grubel: There is the fuel cell project with Bewag of Berlin and our partners VEAG, EdF, E.ON, which is financially supported by the European Commission. It is about the first 250kw PEM fuel cell block heating power system in Europe. This project started in July last year, and we are now beginning to review performance results. Most prominent among our hydrogen projects is the W.E.I.T. project here in Hamburg. W.E.I.T. stands for "Hydrogen Energy Integration Transport" and includes the hydrogen filling station in Hamburg and five hydrogen fueled vehicles on the road. We are still getting the hydrogen from the chemical industry where it is by-product. In the future, it will be produced through electrolysis using regenerative energies, i.e. from "green" electricity.

Question: What will HEW show at Hydrogen Expo?

Holger Grubel: We will demonstrate why a utilities company looks at hydrogen. In our opinion H2 is the energy carrier which can be used most effectively in traffic. Among the various possibilities to produce hydrogen we believe electrolysis to be the most promising. Because there is already electricity everywhere hydrogen can potentially be produced in any given place. The future is in renewable energies, and only electrolysis provides us with the chance to generate hydrogen without causing any emissions. Thus, at Hydrogen Expo we will present our vision how an emission-free energy carrier for vehicle applications can be produced from green electricity.

Question: How can this be combined with wind power and solar energy systems?

Holger Grubel: Wind or solar energy systems deliver electricity directly to the public net, that is into the locally existing infrastructure. The advantage of electrolysis is that stations can be installed wherever there is a demand for hydrogen. This means that wind power can be fed in to the net without any significant losses, and electricity can be taken out and used for electrolysis any place we want. If you look at where wind power stations are currently located, in sparsely inhabited areas along the coastline, or where they will be located in the future, in offshore areas – this would not be the best site for a hydrogen filling station. Filling stations need to be where the people are.

Question: You are jointly exhibiting with Hamburger Hochbahn AG (HHA). What are you going to show together?

Holger Grubel: We will show what such a filling station and the beginning of a hydrogen infrastructure could look like. We see the first everyday use of H2 in fleet traffic. HHA is a perfect example for this. HHA has only five depots for about 700 busses. This means that they would actually need only five filling stations to operate all vehicles. This is where we as a utilities company come in. In addition to the electricity and heat we are already delivering we are now extending our range with a new commodity by providing HHA with the hydrogen they need.

Question: Are you pursuing this outside of Hamburg, too?

Holger Grubel: Absolutely. HEW is no longer a regional provider but will become the third largest utilities company in Germany. We will not restrict ourselves to Hamburg but will be active wherever we have electricity, and that is now all over Europe.

Question: What will the future of the hydrogen economy be like in your opinion?

Holger Grubel: Bright by all means. As already indicated, the main application for us lies in traffic. This of course depends on progress in fuel cell vehicle development. Once efficient vehicles are on the market hydrogen becomes an important energy carrier which has its best chance for market penetration in fleet operation. This will not only open a huge market for any utilities company, it will also significantly reduce CO2 emissions.

The two focus areas Solar Energy and Wind Power on the Hydrogen Expo show floor are designed to provide answers to the question where green electricity for clean hydrogen production comes from. Here, wind power and photovolatic systems manufacturers, know how providers and project management companies can present themselves within a dedicated environment. Exhibitors can choose between a joint participation or individual booths and can round off their presence with a lecture in the seminar forum. For information please call tel. +49-211-687858-0 or click www.hydrogen-expo.com.

R&D Pavilion with High Tech Design

The design for the R&D Pavilion at Hydrogen Expo, which was alreaedy introduced in last month's edition, has just been finalized and will underline both the uniqueness of the projects presented and their relevance within the greater picture. The light, spaciously designed high tech environment will provide a buzzing networking forum for research, industry and politics. The R&D Pavilion packages offer exhibitors turn key solutions including everything from pre-show PR support to on-site catering for their guests. To reserve your stand at the pavilion now please call tel. +49-211-687858-11 or email to info@hydrogen-expo.com.