Mar 18 2008
Eden Energy Ltd., through its wholly-owned U.S. subsidiary Hythane Company LLC, today announced it has received a U.S. patent for its cryogenic storage vessels for liquid hydrogen. Among the applications, the new technology will advance the practicality of hydrogen cars by optimizing energy storage, reducing or eliminating the need for bulky lithium ion batteries.
The main use for this technology, called Superconducting Magnetic Energy Storage (SMES), will be in the automotive industry. Whether used for traditional hybrids, electric cars, or hydrogen combustion engines, SMES will capture and use energy from the vehicle braking system to reduce or eliminate the use of large, expensive batteries. By combining fuel storage and the battery into a single unit, the range and efficiency of alternative fuel vehicles will be increased, and fuel can be stored in a much smaller space.
“This technology addresses many of the barriers to popular use of alternative fuels, such as hydrogen,” said Greg Egan, Chief Technology Officer at the Hythane Company and inventor of the SMES system. “By increasing the range and efficiency of hybrid, electric, and hydrogen powered vehicles, SMES has immediate uses today. It also brings us a big step closer to the practical use of pure hydrogen.”
The innovation of SMES is that the vehicle fuel tank becomes a storage device to capture electrical energy from a regenerative braking system or other engine generation system, reducing or eliminating the need for on-board batteries. Integrating the SMES system with a liquid cryogenic fuel tank enables superconductivity, providing frictionless energy storage.
“This is another example of how Eden Energy is creating real-world solutions that will take us onto the hydrogen highway,” said Gregory Solomon, Chairman and CEO of Eden Energy. “We are very fortunate to have the finest minds in the world at Eden Energy, working to bring the benefits of clean, renewable energy from promise to reality.” On a larger scale, the technology can provide a system for transporting both electricity and liquid hydrogen from renewable energy sites to markets, when connection to the power grid is not possible.