New Cell Phone Charger Turns Water in to Electricity

A palm-sized fuel cell that turns H2O in to physical phenomenon aims to have wall outlets a thing of the past for charging up your cell phone.

Being off the grid, or afar from an AC outlet, used to meant you couldnt assign your phone or alternative personal electronic devices. But a new device called the H3 horse aims to facilitate on-the-go charging.

Developed by Stockholm-based myFC, the H3 horse relies on unstable fuelcells and is set for blurb recover in Scandinavia in December, prior to creation the approach to a wider marketplace together with the United States a little time in 2011. It will cost we estimate $40 to $50.

About the distance of a sandwich, the rectangularshaped horse houses aso-called electron sell surface (PEM) fuel cell. Like alternative fuel cells, the H3 chemically reacts hydrogen stored in containers the association calls "tea bags" and oxygen from the air at conflicting electrodes to emanate electricity.

Until now, however, majority PEM appetite inclination were as well massive to lift around since they contained built fuel cells. To forestall the device from overheating whilst distributing the hydrogen and oxygen via the stack, compulsory designs compulsory additional components such as compressors and pumps, that take up space and devour energy.

The fuel cells inside of the H3 horse dont need these additional components since they arent built plumb atop one another. Instead, they are continuous corresponding utilizing adhesives. Also, a specifically written surface well spreads the hydrogen via the device but pumps.

Out in the Wilderness

To make make make make use of of of of the H3, users lift the horse and a couple of tea bags fuel packets containing hydrogen fuel.

When the time to assign up,� the usually thing that you do out there in the archipelago or the timberland is flow H2O in to the greeting chamberand at the same time put a tea bag in to that cell and close it and off you go, pronounced myFC CEO Bj�rn Westerholm.

The containing alkali greeting that takes place in between the H2O and the fuelpellets produces hydrogen, that moves up in to the fuel cell to furnish electricity.

The appetite constructed can be used rught away only bond your phone to the horse utilizing a mini USB connector. Or it can be stored for after make make make make use of of of of by a small lithium-ion battery thats enclosed in one of the horse models.

Off the Grid

In further to creation charging outdoor a cinch, the H3 horse couldalso be utilitarian in building countries, Westerholm said.

To the knowledge, there are about 1 billion people in building countries that essentially have cell coverage ... [and] if they had a cell phone they could make make make make use of of of of it, he told TechNewsDaily.

According to Westerholm, the main thing preventing people in building countries from removing cell phones is not cost or availability, but the miss of electricity.

Westerholm pronounced that the fuel cell chargers his association will marketplace in building countries will make make make make use of of of of a opposite pattern to get the costs down to about $15.

These chargers will have "more optimized electronicsfor that sold phone marketplace with specific connectors that will dump the cost down dramatically, Westerholm said.

But Isidor Buchmann, CEO of Cadex Electronics, a battery research firm, pronounced $15 could still be as well costly for communities that consequence anaverage of $2 per day.

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