Fuel cells move step closer to acceptance

Progress towards a more common use of fuel cells as a power source is growing closer. The Canadian Standards Association has published the first of 15 standards developed for the global use of the technology.
The new ANSI/CSA America FC 1-2004 Stationary Fuel Cell Power System standard sets requirements for the process of extracting hydrogen from fuels such as hydrogen gas, methanol, ethanol, kerosene, diesel, gasoline, zinc particulate, natural gas, methane gas mixtures and liquefied petroleum gases.
Fuel cells produce power without emitting greenhouse gases, so they are looked on with favour by environmentalists.
CSA is also developing standards for the interconnection of renewable energy sources, such as wind, solar and biomass, into the power distribution grid.
At the Hydrogen and Fuel Cells Conference 2004 in Toronto, held September 28, the president of CSA said: “If fuel cell and other alternative energy technologies are to be successfully adopted into mass market applications, government and industry leaders in Canada and around the globe need to be actively involved in the endorsement of standards.
The organization also develops standards on behalf of the U.S. Department of Energy for hydrogen products and systems.