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43 Comments
- capn_caveman, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2I would venture a guess that this device contains as much or less fuel as a butane cigarette lighter. I've got one of those in my pocket right now and I'm not concerned.
- DDarkfire, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1You wont be able to use it on airplanes...
- capn_caveman, on 10/12/2007, -0/+13.5 millileters of fluid over the span of 35 hours isn't going to release many fumes.
- ajb2015, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1i still like being able to recharge something without paying for new batteries/fuel.
- Kingmichael, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Which pack of gum?
- lostngone, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I can see it now, your cell phone springs a small leak and the next time it rings, BOOOOOMMMM!
I guess using my front pants pocket to store my phone is now out. - NINJ4, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Guys 3.5ml isn't enough to make for a powerful explosion...
- capn_caveman, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I'll tell you what, if recharging my cell phone was as easy as recharging a butane lighter, the I'm all for it.
- Weezel, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I can't wait until the recall comes out: "...has been recalled. There is slight possibility of spark which could ignite the tank...."
Lets hope something like that doesn't happen. 'course we walk around with lighters in our pockets everyday and nothing happens... then again we don't have wires in the case of our lighters.... - cron186, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1ok that link didnt work
http://www.physorg.com/news6542.html - waiwai, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1>what can I do to fill it
Most models I've seen have cartridges rather than a way to refill them. As far as the average consumer is concerned, it would just be a new battery technology. - capn_caveman, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1True, but in a fuel cell it is enough to provide current to supply an electronic device for hours.
- capn_caveman, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1@cron186: this was news to me when I read it; but if you can provide information that I duped an already submitted article to digg then post that instead of a link to a story.
- superal1394, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1when can this work for my laptop? I would LOVE to be able to game on the go. (oh the possibilities...)
- neggbird, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1It has to release fumes and that can't be too good.
- CptnObvious, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1my iAudio X5L already has 35 hours of audio playback....
- doctapeppa, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1"It has to release fumes and that can't be too good."
Actually when you burn alcohol you don't get much more than carbon dioxide and water. - waiwai, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I've actually seen an article or two about votes/legislation on allowing fuel cells on airplanes. It's not allowed now, but most articles make it sound like it will happen and that they aren't very dangerous.
- x2dx, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1o yay enstead of just checking the cost of gas for my car now i half to check the cost of gas for my cell phone.
- RexStJames, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1So what can I do to fill it (every 35 hours)?
- RexStJames, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1kennybain: that's Methane, not methanol.
- kennybain, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Methanol... isn't that what gets expelled when someone "breaks wind"?
Can anyone say free fuel??? - domokunt, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0"Hey man i need to refill my phone, this nozzles to big."
- NidStyles, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1If your alcoholic beverage contains methanol, I would suggest finding another brand. Methonal is bad for a brewery, and they spend a lot of money ensuring they don't end up with it, and filtering whatever does make it in.
- Cobra_Rob, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0And my chances of getting this on a plane are??????
- sadsac, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0I wonder if you can huff this stuff.
- jayf, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1This is dumb.
We're talking about the electrical equivalent of going from MP3s back to CDs (streamed distribution versus physical for those that don't g.e.t. i.t.)
Yes batteries suck but what we need are more power efficient electronics and more ubiquitous power outlets for us to recharge more often. - cron186, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0ok. one last time this is old news and the article here http://www.physorg.com/news6542.html does a much better job of explaining this tech so check it out and its from 3 months ago ie this story is not new
- crapiolio, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1What's the point of long battery life?
- mc1123, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0can you say...
TERMINATOR?????? - ochito, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0@jayf: Your analogy doesn't hold water. There is no comparison possible between distribution media for music and sources of energy. And anyway, fuel cells are much more technologically advanced than traditional batteries and they do the same thing: convert chemically stored energy into electrical energy. You need to compare them on the right terms, which brings me to:
@x2dx: You "half" to check the cost of batteries for your devices anyway. There are only two valid basis for comparison here: Energy density and Cost of Ownership. Fuel cells allow for much higher energy density than regular batteries, i.e. a similar weight of fuel cell plus fuel will far outlast its equivalent weight in any battery chemistry available today, even lithium polymer. As for cost of ownership, while it is true that you will have to keep recharging the device, if you add up the cost of the "recharges" over the working lifetime of the device, and do the same for alkaline batteries, or even rechargeable NiMH or Lithium, you will see that the costs come out about the same. Methanol is extremely cheap.
The final important point is not being dependent on a charger. The autonomy you could have with a methanol fuel cell powered device is only limited by the amount of methanol you want to carry with you. If you use the flash-based player as an example, 3.5 mililiters of the stuff gave you 35 hours of playing time. That means that you can go for a month-long trip with about 70 mililiters of methanol, which is about the size of a medium perfume bottle, and never have to worry about the compatibility of your charger with the wall plug wherever you are, not to mention not having to bring the charger, plugpack, extra sets of batteries, etc..
This is an extremely cool tech, and I hope they can get over all the hurdles quickly so it makes it to market soon. - apache2, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0methanol, meh, no digg, maybe if it was a hydrogen cell :D
- ToddC, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0If it can't be recharged at home, I don't want it.
- MrPhelps, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Two remarks :
methanol+oxygen -> carbon dioxyde + water.
The water is usually kept inside the container to be mixed with the methanol since the reaction only works in a roughtly 3% aquous solution. So the only exhaust woul be CO2.
Methanol is extremely toxic and quite volatile, this may be why the recharge seems to be made with a cartridge and not a small bottle like a lighter. I'm sure we'll see a solution for this problem in the future. - doctechnical, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0doctapeppa: "Actually when you burn alcohol you don't get much more than carbon dioxide and water."
Yeah, as I understand it, these things are going to "breath" water vapor. In a closed space (say, a briefcase) you'd want to be careful about condensation. Y'know, with all that electronics stuff around.
Still, I recon with ten years this will be standard tech. Which would you rather have for all the gadgets that require batteries today? Recharge (hours) or inject (seconds)?
Go Go Gadget Alchohol! - establish, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0The story isnt true... theres no mp3 players on the japanese market that use this technology, if you check out the toshiba site and their mp3 player site gigabeat, through babelfish, there is nothing about these players... http://www.gigabeat.net/mobileav/audio/
- VelvetoneFusion, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0i can just imagine going somewhere, reeking of alcohol, trying to explain that it was because you were charging your phone and slipped...
- Plezops, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0no picture.... thats all i can complain about :)
umm METHANOL ... sounds yummy - Kashey, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Next problem will be - nozzles compatibility issue.
- storm16, on 10/12/2007, -1/+0Yeah, leave it to Toshiba to come up with a fuel cell. As power hungry as their laptops and as poor luck as I have had with their batteries (I've got 3 different models, and none had more than about 90 minutes battery life new, and they degraded quickly), I wouldn't be surprised if Toshiba were working on a pocket-sized reactor...
- zetsurin, on 10/12/2007, -1/+0Damn, it uses alcohol. This is going to drive up the price of my 101 proof Wild Turkey for sure once it takes off :-/
- cron186, on 10/12/2007, -2/+0wait wasn't there a story on this like 3 months ago IN SEPTEMBER here. Oh yeah there was
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -4/+0Yeah, no points ;)
Kiltak
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