Energy News  
Hybrids On The High Seas

illustration only

 Washington - Mar 10, 2004
Fuel cells for future ships As hybrid electric cars become more commonplace on America's highways, the Navy is working to bring hybrid electric ships to the high seas.

The Office of Naval Research is developing innovative propulsion systems based on new fuel-cell technology for efficient generation of electrical power--and greater design flexibility--for future ships.

To ensure a relatively quick transition to this promising technology, ONR is funding development of a method to extract hydrogen from diesel fuel. A diesel reforming system would take advantage of the relative low cost of the fuel and the Navy's established infrastructure for buying, storing, and transporting it.

Unlike gas turbines and diesel engines, fuel cells do not require combustion, and therefore don't produce pollutants such as nitrogen oxide. Fuel cells are also far more efficient than combustion engines.

ONR program officer Anthony Nickens explains that "the Navy's shipboard gas-turbine engines typically operate at 16 to 18 percent efficiency because Navy ships usually sail at low to medium speeds that don't require peak use of the power plant. The fuel cell system that ONR is developing will be capable of between 37 to 52 percent efficiency."

Moreover, fuel cells will permit design of a "distributed" power system, since unlike conventional engines, they can be dispersed throughout the ship instead of being co-located with the ship's shaft. This added flexibility will improve ship survivability.

Nickens says that the Navy's DD(X) land-attack destroyer program is very interested in fuel cell technology as a supplemental power source. Fuel cells combine improved efficiency, low emissions, and design flexibility, all of which help slash shipbuilding costs--a bottom-line goal of the Navy's current "transformation" efforts.

ONR is testing a 500-kilowatt diesel fuel reformer, or "integrated fuel processor," that is compatible with a proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell, at the Department of Energy Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory in Idaho Falls. Reforming diesel is especially tricky due to the sulfur present in the fuel.

The integrated fuel processor heats and vaporizes the diesel, then the sulfur in it is converted into hydrogen sulfide. The hydrogen sulfide is then exposed to zinc oxide, oxidizing the sulfur into sulfur dioxide, and separating it from the hydrogen.

The testing will continue through June 2004 to prove out the reforming process. Meanwhile, ONR is looking at design approaches to reduce the size of the processor, which consists of an arrangement of valves, water-gas shift reactors, an oxidizer, and other components, so that it won't take up too much space on a Navy ship.

Community
Email This Article
Comment On This Article

Related Links
Office of Naval Research
SpaceDaily
Search SpaceDaily
Subscribe To SpaceDaily Express
Powering The World in the 21st Century at Energy-Daily.com



Memory Foam Mattress Review
Newsletters :: SpaceDaily :: SpaceWar :: TerraDaily :: Energy Daily
XML Feeds :: Space News :: Earth News :: War News :: Solar Energy News


Europe Debates Nuclear Energy
Washington (UPI) Jan 11, 2006
European Union countries are starting to rethink their opposition to nuclear energy amid a dispute between Russia and Ukraine over natural gas supplies, but energy analysts say a switch still lacks a green light.







  • Hybrids On The High Seas
  • UPI Energy Watch
  • Emcore Wins Boeing Satellite Platform
  • Mitsubishi Electric Seals Solar Panel Contract With

  • Yucca Mountain Site Must Make Use Of Geological Safety Net
  • New Jersey Physicist Uncovers New Information About Plutonium
  • Complex Plant Design Goes Virtual To Save Time And Money
  • Volcanic Hazard At Yucca Mountain Greater Than Previously Thought





  • NASA Uses Remotely Piloted Airplane To Monitor Grapes



  • Sonic Boom Modification May Lead To New Era
  • Hewitt Pledges Support For Aerospace Industry
  • National Consortium Picks Aviation Technology Test Site
  • Wright Flyer Takes To The Sky In Las Vegas

  • Los Alamos Hopes To Lead New Era Of Nuclear Space Tranportion With Jovian Mission
  • Boeing Selects Leader for Nuclear Space Systems Program
  • Boeing-Led Team to Study Nuclear-Powered Space Systems
  • Boeing To Build Space-borne Power Generator

  • The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2006 - SpaceDaily.AFP and UPI Wire Stories are copyright Agence France-Presse and United Press International. ESA PortalReports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additionalcopyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by SpaceDaily on any Web page published or hosted by SpaceDaily. Privacy Statement