Ohio's hydrogen fuel-cell makers poised for boom times
Jun 13 - McClatchy-Tribune Regional News - Tom Harrison The
Lima News, Ohio
Ohio stands poised to become a major player in the hydrogen
fuel-cell industry, says the head of a statewide coalition of
fuel-cell developers.
"Over the years we've seen the industry evolve, and right now
we're on a significant upturn," said Pat Valente, executive
director of the Ohio Fuel Cell Coalition. "I see us surpassing
some of the other alternative energy areas. Some of this may be
because of the economy, but it's also because of the maturity of
the industry."
A local member of the coalition, American Trim, is developing
components for hydrogen fuel cells. American Trim hosted a
coalition board of directors meeting Tuesday, which included a
visit to The Lima News.
"Fuel cells we're interesting in developing are for
transportation, automobiles," said Steve Hatkevich, director of
research and development for American Trim. "The technology is
proven, we know it's reliable, it's robust enough, but can we
now meet the economics?"
Fuel-cell-driven cars work with stunning efficiency -- nearly
three times as efficient as cars with traditional gasoline
engines -- but they're still in the prototype phase, being built
by hand, one at a time. Hatkevich said. American Trim is
developing very specific parts -- specifically, a part called a
bipolar plate -- for the fuel cell that eventually will be
installed in tens of thousands or even millions of cars --
assuming the coalition's vision for a fuel-cell future
materializes.
Right now, parts makers such as American Trim are developing
components, figuring out ways to make them better and more
economically, in order to supply them to auto manufacturers. The
objective is to make fuel-cell-driven cars cheaper to buy and
cheaper to drive.
Ultimately, economic as well as environmental concerns will
drive the switch from gas to hydrogen cars, Hatkevich said,
adding the switch will begin soon, if it hasn't already begun.
"If you're talking about wanting to supply components into
the fuel-cell industry, they're having their prequality teams
come out to your site to do quality inspections," he said. "The
minute they send their advance or prequality teams out into the
industry to make sure you're ready, now they're getting ready to
make a move. And we're in those processes today."
One hurdle to hydrogen is the limited availability of
hydrogen refueling stations. There are a handful, mostly in
California. Hydrogen must be manufactured, pressurized and
delivered. It can be made from abundant chemical compounds, but
hydrogen by itself doesn't exist naturally, said William A.
Whittenberger, president of Catacel and chairman of the Ohio
Fuel Cell Coalition's board of directors. His
Garrettsville-based company makes components for hydrogen
production. A recent hydrogen plant Catacel installed for a
manufacturer in Guadalajara, Mexico, instantly improved the
manufacturer's efficiency by 18 percent, he said.
Catacel is focused on making hydrogen production equipment
smaller, cheaper and more efficient, Whittenberger said. That
will pave the way for more refueling stations.
Where the industry goes from there is anyone's guess,
Hatkevich said. It could become commonplace to install a home
hydrogen generator that converts natural gas into electricity,
home heating and hot water, he said.
The coalition has targeted a first generation of growth areas
including forklifts,
Ohio Fuel Cell Coalition is headquartered on the campus of
Lorain County Community College, in Elyria. its 80 members
include industries, academic institutions and nonprofit sectors.