Virent Energy Systems: Liquid Biofuel Fed Hydrogen Generator
by John Laumer, Philadelphia 
on 05.20.06
Technology Review reports that Virent Energy Systems has developed a novel way to generate hydrogen cheaply and cleanly from biomass. Instead of removing hydrogen from natural gas, at high temperatures, a prototype Virent “reformer” is being used to derive hydrogen from liquid fuel such as corn syrup, at relatively low temperatures. “The company is also about to begin work on a $1 million U.S. Navy project to build portable fuel-cell generators. The goal is to make self-contained units capable of producing their own hydrogen from a biomass-derived glycerol solution or even antifreeze”. Virent claims it's able to produce hydrogen for $2-3 per kilogram -- competitive with natural-gas-derived hydrogen.
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Last year's DOE Merit Review document on the subject can be had here:
http://www.hydrogen.energy.gov/pdfs/review05/pd7_cortright.pdf
This year's event's proceedings (happened last week actually) will be posted soon.
As we all do in these DOE projects, we look into the future; and $2-3 per kg is some time away and highly feedstock dependent. But it is a very neat process, for sure, one that promises the opportunity to NOT use natural gas when making hydrogen.
Kudos to Virent for their efforts.
hi i am doing a school project on biofuels and was wondering what advantages does the using the corn syrup instead of taking hydrogen from natural gas? how does taking hydrogen from natural gas effect the environment?
will someone please email the answers as i really need to know
thanks
hi i am doing a school project on biofuels and was wondering what advantages does the using the corn syrup instead of taking hydrogen from natural gas? how does taking hydrogen from natural gas effect the environment?
will someone please email the answers as i really need to know
thanks