University of Hawaii develops charcoal-fired fuel cell

University of Hawai’i researcher Michael Antal has developed a working fuel cell that uses charcoal as its fuel and operates at bread-baking temperatures.

The Antal system, which he calls an aqueous alkali biocarbon fuel cell, is unlike other fuel cell technology both in that it uses a renewable fuel and that it does not require particularly high temperatures.

Renewable energy is the watchword in the modern energy debate, an effort pushed in large part by high global oil prices and the perception that global political instability threatens the availability of fuel.

Gov. Linda Lingle is backing a package of bills in the Legislature that includes strong support for renewables, and President Bush has been on the stump in recent weeks on behalf of energy initiatives that include hydrogen fuel cell cars, solar power, wind research, and more.

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