Alternative Energyautomaker Creates New Fuelcell Car

Developed by the research team of local electriccar manufacturer Clean Fuel Energy Enterprise, the new Thai fuelcell car will run on electricity produced by the latest fuelcell tech¬nology - a new kind of power that uses hydrogen and oxygen.

The technology is expected to provide a new, alternative energy source at a time when the world is facing an energy crisis.

Best of all, its only byproduct - water - will cause no harm to the environment.

The company's research team has spent six years to develop the indegeneouslymade fuelcell tech¬nology for electric cars and has recently come out with the coun¬try's first prototype, which can go up to a speed of 130 kilometres per hour.

"Starting with 960watt fuel cells, we have succeeded in improv¬ing the cell capacity to 10 kilowatts, which is potent enough to power a car," company chairman Air Marshal Morrakot Charnsomruad said.

Of the total 10 KW, he said, 5 KW of its power would be used to drive the car's motor, while the remain¬ing power would be supplied to ancillary parts, such as the air conditioner and audiovisual equipment.

The company has received fund¬ing support of Bt14 million from the National Research Council of Thailand (NRCT) for this project.

Morrakat said that to put the technology to practical use, the company is in talks with three to four other companies, who would be able to leverage the fuelcell tech¬nology for mass production.

The negotiations are expected to conclude soon and Morrakot expects the fuelcellbased electric car to be available commercially in the Thai market by next year.

Even though the prototype costs about Bt6 million, he believes the price will come down to about Bt2 million when the car is launched commercially and will further reduce when the production vol¬umes go up.

Project manager Group Captain Chesda Kiriratnikorn said the com¬pany's 10KW fuel cell could be used to not only drive the car but also to generate electricity for home appliances.

For the new version, the team has developed a technology to enhance the car's hydrogenstorage capacity.

Developed from a previous model which had a storage capaci¬ty of just 280 to 400 litres, the new version can carry 900 litres of hydrogen and provide longerlast¬ing power. The enhanced hydrogen tank can drive the car for about 40 kilometres.

The company's fuelcell technol¬ogy is based on Proton Exchange Membrane fuel cells. Because it can operate at low temperature and pressure, it offers a longer lifecycle of 10,000 hours, or about 13.7 years.

The NRCT also plans to push for the establishment of hydrogengas stations in the country, which will become a necessity when these fuelcell cars are available for commer¬cial use.