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What is the near and distant future of fuel cells?

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Companies like General Motors are joining their resources with other major car manufacturers to produce and market fuel cell vehicles. General Motor already has a pro-type vehicle called the Hy-wire, which uses both hydrogen fuel cells and electronic components. The innovation in this vehicle extends beyond the hydrogen engine because electronic signals operate the steering, braking and acceleration. Imagine a vehicle without all the hydraulics associated with backing out of your driveway and speeding off down the road! In the meantime, "fuel cells" are for sale on the internet with great promises of increasing the fuel efficiency of your vehicle. Consumer interest groups generally suggest being aware of exaggerated claims. Fuel cell car kits for educational purpose may also be found online. Before fuel cells become the norm, according to General Motors, the problem of hydrogen storage must be more adequately addressed. Others issues that hinder the broad application of fuel cells is the cost of the devices. Inadvertently, the cost of developing effective fuels cells will be passed on to consumers, and at present, that is a great deal of money! Questions about the durability of fuel cells remain. It would be very problematic for there to be a large-scale switch to this alterative power source, only to find that it is breaks down easily or parts are quickly worn out. On a broader scale, a mass exodus from the dependency on fossil fuels to fuel cells (or any other alternative power source, for that matter) has huge implications for the overall infrastructure of society. Perhaps slow development and implementation of fuel cells, as the case has been so far, is not such a bad idea for this reason.

Sources:

www.gmability.com
www.hunsakersports.com
www.howstuffworks.com

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