We all know that the fossil fuels are not going to last for ever, and that something needs to be done about it. Most of us think that some form of alternative fuel is a good idea, but what to do about it? There are arguments in favour or all kinds of energy sources, and leadership seems locked in a kind of stasis over what to do. One dynamic company which is not hit by stasis is Energy Replay, creators and innovators of new fuel cell technology.

GIBRALTAR PLACED TO SHINE IN CLEAN POWER REVOLUTION

Credits: Saturday 25th November 2006  Gibraltar Chronicle, by Brian Reyes
For more information on renewable energy and the company which produced this fuel Cell, Energy replay, visit their site.

In a small workshop in the New Harbours business park, a local company is developing technology that could help save the planet.
Energy Replay is using cutting-edge science and engineering to bring new ideas to the international market for renewable energy sources.
It is complex stuff for the novice, but in simple terms the project boils down to this: a self-sufficient system that uses solar energy and hydrogen fuel cells to generate pollution-free electricity.  The only by-product of the process is water. No fumes, no carbon emissions, no waste.

Paul Young (Right), Steve Dean (Left), in front of the innovative solar mirror furnace which forms the basis of the revolutionary new source of energy.

Working with Energy Replay and closely related companies in the UK, is a quiet, unassuming man called Paul Young, a Gibraltar resident with a passion for all things green.

Mr Young believes Gibraltar is well placed to become a leading light in Europe for both the development and the use of clean energy technologies.

“The thing about Gibraltar is that because it’s a small place, it’s an ideal reference site,” he told the Chronicle during a recent interview.

“I also look at Gibraltar Ltd,” Mr Young added, a reference to the local economy. “To have another revenue stream – particularly in terms of production [of renewable energy technology] – can’t be a bad thing.”

TIMELY INTERVENTION

The interview with Mr Young comes at a time when environmental groups and governments across the globe are focusing great attention on the issue of climate change.

Less than a fortnight ago Jaime Netto, Gibraltar’s Environment Minister, revealed plans to launch a local forum on climate change as part of a broader Government programme.

“The package of policies focus on issues such as land use, energy conservation, transport and traffic management, environmental education and awareness, waste management, air and water quality, development and flood risk,” he said. “The programme will target the public and private sectors of our community with the Government leading by example wherever possible.”

But balanced against these laudable aims is the harsh reality that Gibraltar faces a sharp rise in energy demand over in the immediate future.

Meeting that demand will be a crucial challenge for any local administration over the coming years.
According to a Government consultation document released this summer, new development projects will lead to a “parasitic” demand for electricity that will see Gibraltar’s greenhouse gas emissions more than double over the next six years. The document concludes that there is little scope to reduce emissions from power stations, the main polluters in Gibraltar, between now and 2012.

Within that same timescale, the Government also plans to build a new generating station that will play a central role in providing electricity for future civilian consumption. The proposal is still in the planning stages but the plant is due to come into operation in 2009. It will replace the existing one at Waterport, which is due to be decommissioned the same year. The Ministry of Defence will also close down its generating station in 2009. It has yet to decide whether to replace it with a new facility or buy electricity from the Government’s new power station. In theory though, two new generating stations could be in operation in Gibraltar by 2009 or thereabouts.

OPPORTUNITY FOR GIBRALTAR

Mr Young believes Gibraltar currently has a unique opportunity to make a major commitment to green energy and to create jobs for local people in this new energy sector. Evidence of this is clear already – Neil Llanello, a young Gibraltarian has been working for Energy Reply as a Technician during the past year - learning new skills and developing his knowledge in this exciting, developing technology.

“With the Kyoto agreement, the EU directives and Carbon Credits, anyone who’s thinking about replacing diesel generators with more diesel generators must have a hole in the head,” Mr. Young said, using unusually frank terms. “It’s simply not the future anymore.”

Part of the problem is that there is a shortage of information about this sort of technology outside of specialist circles.

Steve Dean, co-founder and lead engineer for Energy Replay, sums up the dilemma. “I think people in general aren’t aware of this sort of technology, or of how serious the situation is with climate change,” he said. There is also a common misconception that this is untested science, or that renewable, sustainable energy amounts to financially-unviable energy.

Not so, Mr Young insists. As a businessman active in this and other markets, he makes clear that sustainable energy solutions have to be profitable – and economical - in order to succeed. He uses fuel cell technologies as an example, recognising that while there is a sizeable initial investment, the long-term prospects more than balance out.

“Our aim is to bring fuel cell capital costs down to beating the price of a diesel generator,” he said. “Although we can’t beat these prices right now, by year 10 - because of the maintenance and fuel costs – they’ll break even, and by year 20, you’re more than making a profit compared to what the cost would be of a diesel generator.”

“The economics of it work out,” he added. “You break even over a 10-year period, and as the technology improves, that payback period will be shorter and shorter. Thereafter you’re in profit, compared to running a diesel generator. In addition to the eventual cost savings you also have to take into account the savings on emissions – I believe that most people would prefer to use electricity that makes 1000 litres of water rather than emit 10 tons of carbon dioxide.”

SO HOW DO FUEL CELLS WORK?

All fuel cells use hydrogen and oxygen. Inside these cells, a chemical reaction between hydrogen, oxygen and a catalyst generates electricity leaving only one by-product, pure water.

The system being developed by Energy Replay and its associated companies is geared toward a specific application, namely providing electrical power to base stations for mobile phone networks. Many of these stations, particularly in the developing world, are in remote locations far from power networks. It is vital that they are self-sufficient, low maintenance and cheap to run.

At the heart of the system is a fuel cell that is used to generate electricity. Think of a fuel cell as akin to a battery, except with one crucial difference: whereas a battery eventually runs out, a fuel cell will keep on going as long as it is supplied with fuel.

There are a number of companies active in the design and production of fuel cells. Among them are Alternative Fuel Systems (AFS) and Fuel Cell Control (FCC), both working closely with Energy Replay and largely financed by Mr Young.

Cells of this design are available on the market in various sizes, including ones large enough to produce sufficient electricity for several hundred houses.

One of the key hurdles to their use is the supply of hydrogen. At present, larger units are normally supplied using hydrogen from liquefied natural gas [LNG], a fossil fuel. Although they are more efficient than burning oil or diesel in a power station, the process still relies on fossil fuels and requires an injection of energy – more often than not from existing power-supply frameworks – in order to extract hydrogen from the LNG before it can be supplied to the fuel cell.

In other words, while they produce cleaner energy than normal power stations, they are still dirty and provide no alternative to our reliance on finite resources of fossil fuels.

INNOVATION

Energy Replay and its related companies have designed a system that uses solar energy to generate a number of chemical reactions to provide fuel to a hydrogen fuel cell in a cyclical process that is both self-sufficient and entirely clean.

The first step in the process is the extraction of hydrogen from ammonia, a common chemical made up of nitrogen and a high concentration of hydrogen molecules. This step is carried out using what is known as an ammonia cracker. Crackers are used elsewhere in industry, but have never been employed for this application before.  

 The reason for using ammonia is that it can be easily and safely stored.

The ammonia cracker splits the nitrogen molecules from the hydrogen. The nitrogen is kept for use at a later stage in the process. The hydrogen is channelled to supply a fuel cell designed by AFS and FCC.  Inside the cell, electricity is generated as a result of a chemical reaction between hydrogen and oxygen molecules taken from the air.

The by-product of this step, water, is then channelled into a solar furnace designed in Gibraltar by Mr. Dean. The furnace uses mirrors to harness heat from the sun and focus it on a small target area. Preliminary tests showed that temperatures in excess of 2000°C can be achieved – enough to create the required chemical reaction.

Inside the solar furnace, the waste water from the fuel cell is split into its two components, hydrogen and oxygen. The oxygen can be channelled back into the fuel cell. The hydrogen is channelled into a second solar furnace and, in another chemical reaction created by solar heat, re-associated with the nitrogen molecules left over from the ammonia cracker.

Inside the second solar furnace, the nitrogen and hydrogen molecules fuse to create ammonia, which is then fed back into the ammonia cracker to re-start the entire process. Sufficient ammonia should be produced to maintain the fuel cell during the night hours.

 “Because there’s no hydrogen infrastructure exists at the moment, all these fuel cells – and some will be in remote locations - need a supply of hydrogen,” Mr Dean said. “The solar furnace is going to be used to produce this fuel on site at the point of need.”

Although the amount of ammonia in the cracker has to be topped up occasionally to compensate for inevitable losses, in broad terms, the system works on its own.

TEST PHASE, NEW IDEAS

The fuel cell at the heart of the system is already in production and available on the market, but other elements of the set-up are still in the test phase.

Trials on the ammonia cracker are in their final stages and are being carried out in the UK.

The solar furnace, however, has been entirely developed and tested here in Gibraltar.  By linking the furnace to a satellite positioning system and a solar calendar, the panels will automatically track the sun across the sky, irrespective of location in the world. Even on a cloudy day, the solar furnace will automatically know which way to point its mirror panels. Energy Replay has already conducted successful trials using a small scale version. It recently completed work on a full-scale version and hopes to start final verification before the end of the year.

Energy Replay has many other ideas for sources of clean energy. Mr Dean has also redesigned a steam turbine that builds on existing technology to maximise the engine’s efficiency. The solar furnace can be used to drive the turbine to either power machinery or produce electricity.

Although the companies’ efforts are currently focused on delivering these applications to the communications sector, Mr Young and his team are brimming with ideas for new projects both for the public and private sectors.

In their small workshop in New Harbours these men are opening new opportunities for the future of clean energy in Gibraltar and helping to save the planet in the process.

For more information on renewable energy and the company which produced this FUel Cell, Energy replay, visit their site.