Alternative Fuels (fuel cells)
Ballard Power System is the world leader in developing and commercializing proton exchange membrane fuel cell power systems. At the heart of this corporation is the Ballard Fuel Cell, a propriety zero-emission engine that converts natural gas, methanol, or hydrogen fuel directly into electricity without combustion. Over the last several years, many large corporations including Daimler-Benz, Chrysler, Honda, General Motors, Nissan, Hitachi, Volkswagen, Volvo, and GPU International have invested large amounts of money into the production of the Ballard Fuel Cell in an attempt to create stationary electric power plants, and zero-emission vehicles. The fuel cell was first developed in the 1960's by General Electric for NASA. It was considered as a definite possibility for an alternative power source for space program, but the cost and size of the fuel cell stacks were tremendous. By 1983, Geoff Ballard and a small team of physicists were able to develop the Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) to produce nearly ten times as much energy, while being only a fraction of the size. A fuel cell is an electrochemical device that produces electricity silently, without
Internal combustion engines work by burning fuel to create heat, which is then converted into mechanical energy which runs the car. This conversion of energy is extremely ineffective because a large amount of heat is lost, and energy is lost because of friction. Ballard Fuel Cells, on the other hand, convert fuel directly into electricity, making them two or three times more effective than the obsolete internal combustion engine. Fuel cells use fuel tanks very similar to the ones found on internal combustion engines, and will operate continuously as long as hydrogen and pure oxygen are supplied. Unlike the internal combustion engine, however, fuel cells do not burn fuel and therefor do not produce any harmful pollutants. The Ballard Fuel Cell generates power much differently than the internal combustion engine and the storage battery, which are the two most common forms of power found in our society. The fuel cell has the advantages of both, without the problems of either. combustion. Hydrogen fuel, which is one of the most abundant chemicals in the universe, and oxygen from the air are electrochemically combined in the fuel cell to produce electricity. Heat and pure water vapour are the only by-products of the fuel cell. Throughout the world, there is a great need for a small, portable, clean power source. Since 1997, Ballard has producing fuel cells which could be used for many different things, including laptop computers, cellular phones, televisions, and much more. Without any moving pieces, the Ballard Fuel Cell can be used anywhere, anytime, and in any conditions.
Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1202
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)
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