Comment Re:Tired of the Airline Regulations argument (Score 1) 293
Methanol -is- toxic. But when you dispose of the the methanol cartridge, you're not disposing of the methanol except in trace amounts. The real issue with toxic chemicals and batteries is that the toxic chemical compounds are disposed of -with- the battery, because they -are- the battery. As you use the methanol it is chemically converted to relatively safe byproducts, and is then not a disposal issue.
Gasoline is toxic too, but when you dispose of a car, I'm guessing you don't do it while the car's got a full tank of gas.
What I would really like to see is more research (and government encouragement) in ways to compress hydrogen without using pressure, such as carbon nanotubes. The tubes work like a sponge in a way, they attract hydrogen molecules to increase the density of the hydrogen in a given space. Releasing the hydrogen is a simple matter of applying heat, which can be obtained by recycling the heat released by the fuel cell.
Unfortunate, government encouragement for research in the private sector is lacking, because they would prefer to consider the military applications first, and thus hinder commercial development for use by the public.
Gasoline is toxic too, but when you dispose of a car, I'm guessing you don't do it while the car's got a full tank of gas.
What I would really like to see is more research (and government encouragement) in ways to compress hydrogen without using pressure, such as carbon nanotubes. The tubes work like a sponge in a way, they attract hydrogen molecules to increase the density of the hydrogen in a given space. Releasing the hydrogen is a simple matter of applying heat, which can be obtained by recycling the heat released by the fuel cell.
Unfortunate, government encouragement for research in the private sector is lacking, because they would prefer to consider the military applications first, and thus hinder commercial development for use by the public.
