How does a Michigan State University scientist fuel his enthusiasm for chemistry after 60 years?
By discovering a new energy source, of course.
This week, SiGNa Chemistry Inc. unveiled its new hydrogen cartridges, which provide energy to fuel cells designed to recharge cell phones, laptops and GPS units. The green power source is geared toward outdoor enthusiasts as well as residents of the Third World, where electricity in homes is considered a luxury.
Credit: MSU
Source: SiGNa Chemistry
By discovering a new energy source, of course.
This week, SiGNa Chemistry Inc. unveiled its new hydrogen cartridges, which provide energy to fuel cells designed to recharge cell phones, laptops and GPS units. The green power source is geared toward outdoor enthusiasts as well as residents of the Third World, where electricity in homes is considered a luxury.
Credit: MSU
The spark for this groundbreaking technology came from the laboratory of James Dye, SiGNa’s co-founder and University Distinguished Professor of Chemistry Emeritus at MSU. His work with alkali metals led to a green process to harness the power of sodium silicide, which is the source for SiGNa’s new product.
“In our lab, we were able to produce alkali metal silicides, which basically are made from sodium and silicon, which, in turn, are produced from salt and sand,” Dye said. “By adding water to sodium silicide, we’re able to produce hydrogen, which creates energy for fuel cells. The byproduct, sodium silicate, is also green. It’s the same stuff found in toothpaste.”
SiGNa was able to build on Dye’s research and develop a power platform that produces low-pressure hydrogen gas on demand, convert it to electricity via a low-cost fuel cell and emit simple water vapor.
Dye, director of SiGNa’s scientific council, said that making the jump to research the company’s products was a small one.
“I’ve been working with alkali metals for 50 years,” he said. “My research was closely related to what SiGNa was looking for. So when they came to me with their idea, it was a relatively easy adaptation to make.”
Dye came to MSU in 1953 – two years before MSU was a university. Based on the products that can be linked to Dye’s research just in the last year, it’s clear that he is reaping the rewards of his six decades of scientific sowing.
Using a similar process, Dye was able to assist the creation of a fuel source to power electric bicycles. The fuel cell, developed by SiGNa’s partners, ranges in size from 1 watt to 3 kilowatts and is capable of pushing a bicycle up to 25 mph for approximately 100 miles.
While the mainstream attention of his work is rewarding, it’s the untamed excitement of daily discovery and being able to share it with his students that fuel Dye’s desire to maintain a full-time research schedule.
“Instilling that excitement about chemistry in my undergraduate students and giving them a jump on their graduate research is my reward,” Dye said. “Everyone who has come through the lab and gone on to graduate school has had glowing reviews on how this experience helped their career.”
SiGNa Chemistry on February 14th announced that its proprietary mobileH2™ cartridges which will deliver clean H2 gas instantly for myFC’s PowerTrekk, a wireless rechargeable power source for portable electronics, on demonstration at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona this week.
SiGNa’s mobile-H2™ cartridge contains safe sodium silicide (NaSi); a powder that produces hydrogen (H2) on-demand from its reaction with any type of water, including salt water, packaged in a cartridge for use with fuel cells rated from 1 W to 3 kW.
PowerTrekk, available from Stockholm-based myFC, is the first brand to use SiGNa’s mobile-H2™ to offer a fuel cell-driven power source for mobile phones and other electronic equipment. SiGNa Chemistry specializes in designing custom hydrogen solutions for the fuel cell industry and developed the PowerTrekk Fuel Cartridge specifically for myFC.
“At SiGNa, we can customize our H2 solutions to meet any portable power needs ... unlike other portable chargers, PowerTrekk with SiGNa’s mobile-H2™ provides instant and reliable power anywhere, making it ideal for outdoor enthusiasts, road warriors, and business users in emerging markets,” said Michael Lefenfeld, CEO of SiGNa Chemistry. “SiGNa has created an inherently-safe solution to produce electric power, resulting in an eco-friendly and cost-effective portable solution.”
SiGNa Chemistry’s mobile-H2™ cartridges can be used to power anything from smart phones, to GPS units, to MP3 Players. Also, the mobile-H2™ cartridges can be used to help ignite LED lighting, maintain important sensors and power surveillance and other camera electronics.
H2 Generation, Low-Cost, On-Demand
Mobile-H2™ cartridges meet fuel cell requirements for load management with rapid startup and shutdown capabilities. Electronics can obtain consistent power output over the entire runtime with zero power degradation, as seen in batteries. The mobile-H2™ cartridges are configurable and can be set to operate at a range of pressures from one to 15 psi with a +/- 0.5 psi variability over its lifetime. Cartridges can also be easily exchanged to extend runtime without interrupting power.
Sodium silicide is a non-flammable, air-stable powder and reacts even with non-potable, non-distilled waters atroom temperature to form H2 in a rapid, stable, and controllable reaction.
Safe, No Emissions Manufacturing Process
SiGNa’s sodium silicide (NaSi) is produced with zero waste. All raw materials are generated from renewable starting materials, sodium from sodium chloride (salt) and silicon powder from silicon dioxide (sand)
No comments:
Post a Comment