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TECHNOLOGY
Under the hood with C.En’s hydrogen gas storage technology
C.En's unique technology offers the ultimate solution to the four central challenges to the storage of hydrogen: weight, volume, cost and safety.
C.En's breakthrough is in the accumulation of hydrogen gas in specially designed glass capillaries that are both very light and very small, each capillary only slightly thicker than a human hair.
Advantages / Benefits
Applications
Experiments conducted on C.En Ltd.’s various prototypes at the BAM Federal Institute, have conclusively demonstrated the various uses of this storage system for a variety of applications, including those of the:
- Transport industries -automotive, aircraft/aerospace, ships, maritime vessels, submarines, trucks, rails.
- Electronic industries -communications, defense industry, electric and power applications (mobiles, computers, laptops etc.).
- Manufacturing Industries - fiber materials, containers.
- Infrastructural projects - large and bulk storage, gas stations.
Safety
- Capillaries are a safe method for storing and transporting hydrogen.
- Each capillary acts as its own pressure vessel.
- Each capillary contains only small amounts of hydrogen.
- The specially designed glass materials have three times the strength of steel and a third of its density..
- A large number of capillary arrays can be stacked together in a solid tank made of lightweight materials (e.g. plastics).
- The stacked capillaries support each other and prevent breaking.
Environment
- C.En's accumulation process requires relatively little energy to produce hydrogen as opposed to fossil fuels used by other technologies.
- Hydrogen fuel emits water vapor instead of carbon monoxide or other harmful pollutants.
Convenience
- C.En developed tanks will be used to power either standard combustion engines or state-of-the art hybrid-electric fuel cell vehicles.
- No special infrastructure, piping or intermediate storage facilities will be required for filling or “charging” of fuel cells.
- C.En tanks will be available at auto parts stores and other convenient distribution centers.
- Scientific experiments have conclusively determined that C.En’s technology is lighter, cheaper, safer and easier to handle.
Economics and efficiency
- The components of C.En’s technology provide substantial savings compared to current hydrogen storage tanks which are based on costly fiber carbons.
- Costs of operating C.En-equipped cars will be significantly less than for cars running on any other fuel or hybrid-type car.
- Competing Hydrogen storage technologies were unable to meet the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) 2005 and 2010 cost, weight and volume targets.
- According to the California ARB Independent Panel of Experts, it seems unlikely that either compressed or liquid hydrogen storage systems can meet weight or cost targets, especially the DOE’S 2015 targets
- C.En’s hydrogen gas storage technology has surpassed the DOE’s 2010 and 2015 gravimetric (weight) and volumetric storage targets. Storage targets set by the DOE are used as benchmark standards by which to compare the various hydrogen storage technologies.
- Calculations (of capillary structures, pressure durability etc) indicate that the technology will meet the DOE's ultimate targets of 7.5 %wt; 70 g/L in the near future.
Learn more about C.En's gravimetric (weight) and volumetric storage capacities.
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