***Tools for the Methanol Economy

Dr. George Ulah has a book out titled something like "The Methanol Economy". I have a copy, but right now I can't find it. It is kind of a general overview of energy and indicates the problems with using hydrogen as a "portable fuel" like gasoline. He notes the better options available with shifting to methanol since it can pull the same amount of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere as combustion with it produces. Below is some text from a story on a development by the Max Planck Institute. It should make those who think South Dakota must build a huge electrical infrastructure of powelines to make use of wind energ to think more than twice.
There are alternatives and we should be pushing university research in South Dakota in that direction.

While available membranes meet some of these criteria, they still have disadvantages, such as low conductivity and poor chemical stability at temperatures above 80°C (175°F). Additional problems arise from the switching of PEM manufacturers from hydrogen-based to methanol-based fuel cells.

Methanol is more readily available and safer than hydrogen and also offers greater energy density. However, existing membranes exhibit the so-called methanol crossover, an effect caused by methanol transport from the anode to the cathode through the membrane. This effect drastically reduces a cell's efficiency and so far has prevented a breakthrough for direct methanol fuel cells (DMFCs).

The membrane invented by scientists of the Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research in Stuttgart is based on sulfonated poly(arylene) ionomers that have low swelling properties and demonstrate a high methanol rejection. As a result, the new polymer bars methanol from travelling through the membrane while maintaining high proton conductivity as a result of the very high ion exchange capacity. In addition, it also exhibits superior thermal, thermo-oxidative and hydrolytic stability.

"Fuel cells are a technology with a huge potential," said Joern Erselius, Managing Director of Max Planck Innovation, "but they still need better efficiency. We are very happy that we were able to license this promising technology to a company that already has more than 12 years of experience in this field and that has demonstrated enormous and successful development efforts." He added, the know-how transfer will also be facilitated by a chemist switching from the Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research to FuMA-Tech GmbH.

http://bulletin.sciencebusiness.net/ebulletins/showissue.php3?page=/548/art/9224
New Window LINK to Methanol resistant fuel cell membrane story
http://tinyurl.com/2357sg

**Stay tuned, there will always be new science news even if evolution of religion slows to a crawl--- Doug Wiken