POWER September 2017 - 56

COMMENTARY
Fuel Cells: Key to Our
Electric Energy Future
Harry T. Roman
F
or more than 20 years, I have been championing the use of
fuel cell powered cars to connect the natural gas distribution
network of this country with the electric distribution
network, making them partners in providing clean, safe, electrical
energy at the point of use, and for export back into the
national grid. Some early patents were awarded, but they were
way ahead of their time.
The technological foundation for this concept remains strong
and vital-representing a disruptive force aimed at the heart
of traditional utility system operations. However, there seems
to be a potential partnership that can be forged between auto
manufacturers, electric utilities, and natural gas utilities to
make this all happen.
Outage Risk = Opportunity
In the U.S. there are two centralized energy systems: the
electric utility grid and the natural gas network. Both systems
together touch just about every home. Surprisingly, most people
never think about combining the two systems to create a
resilient hybrid system, immune from major storm disruptions
and terrorist attacks. We hear a great deal today about the
smart grid. Such a hybrid system can be about as smart as it
gets, and quite flexible and sophisticated too.
When a big weather event strikes, the above-ground electric
utility system can take an awful beating. Don't expect that to
change anytime soon, because it is simply too expensive to
retrofit all those lines underground (some estimates suggest at
least 20 times as expensive as overhead construction). On the
other hand, when was the last time your natural gas service
was taken out during any kind of storm-winter or summer?
Wouldn't it be reasonable to ask if there was a way to convert
your home's reliable natural gas service into electricity
for your household? The best way to do this, in my opinion, is
using a fuel cell-a device that can electrochemically convert
natural gas into a useable fuel by stripping off the hydrogen
portion of the methane molecule and combining it with oxygen
to generate clean electricity and some waste heat.
Fuel cell technology is very attractive. It has relatively
high conversion efficiency (32%-42%); produces very small
waste byproducts and some low-grade waste heat; comes in a
highly modular design, allowing for size expansion; is proven
technology; and uses a native and abundant resource-methane-available
from natural and man-made sources.
Fuel Cell Car Power Plants
What if we used fuel cell powered cars in a very different
way than for just transportation? A typical car fuel cell is
56
about 45 kW to 50 kW in size. That capacity is much more
than an average home needs. So I ask a simple question:
Why can't your car power your house both during normal
conditions and when the utility system is unavailable due to
widespread outages?
Go one step further. Why not have all cars generate power
wherever they are parked? Most people only drive their car
about 4% to 6% of the day-mostly for commuting. The rest
of the time it just sits there. It could be put to work during
that downtime.
You see, your car follows you everywhere, and everywhere
you go you need energy. If parking lots were suitably designed
with natural gas and electrical connections, your car
could be turned into a portable power plant whenever you
park it. It could provide you with the energy you need and the
excess could be sold into the market.
The really nice part of this is that fuel cell powered cars
can do it 24/7/365. No vagaries of the wind, no clouds to
block sunshine, just lots of clean power generated all the
time. It is the natural gas network and the electric grid working
together.
By the Numbers
There are more than 250 million registered vehicles in the U.S.
If even 10% of those were 45-kW fuel cell powered cars connected
to the electric grid, it would be equivalent to adding
1,125 GW of power capacity to the system. That's more than
the total generating capacity currently installed in the U.S.
The implications of this are staggering. How would this disruption
affect electric and natural gas utilities, automobile
manufacturers, the oil industry, companies operating fleets of
vehicles, and others?
Because the electric utility industry will always be vulnerable
to large outages, this natural gas-electric concept could
be significant. The fuel cell is the energy transformer between
the two systems. Fuel cell powered cars make it possible to
instantly decentralize the grid, if under attack by Mother Nature
or terrorists. For those of you committed to alternative
energy sources, you can still have them if you want-in fact,
fuel cell powered cars are the ideal back up for them.
Is this a disruptive technology? You bet! Could it be done?
I think so. ■
-Harry T. Roman is a retired engineer, research and
development project manager, teacher, inventor, and author.
He has 12 patents to his credit and is a past recipient of the New
Jersey Inventor of the Year Award, given by the
New Jersey Inventors Hall of Fame.
www.powermag.com
POWER | September 2017
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POWER September 2017

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