In the SOFC, a thin ceramic layer of yttrium-oxide-doped zir­conium oxide (YSZ) serves as electrolyte, allowing the pas­sage of oxygen anions at its operating temperature of 900 to 1000° C. The power output of the systems currently being test­ed ranges from one kilowatt for household energy provision using natural gas up to a pressure-driven 200 […]

OWC is the abbreviation for Oscillating Water Column and describes a design which makes use of the wave motion in rising and falling water columns. Figure 5a shows how a typ­ical OWC functions. It consists of a chamber with two open­ings. One of these is on the side towards the incoming waves and lies beneath […]

As the lightest element, hydrogen has a high mass-specific energy storage density of 120 MJ/kg. This corresponds to about three times the storage density of diesel fuel, at 43 MJ/kg, referred to the so-called lower heating value. How­ever, this physically favorable property of hydrogen cannot readily be applied in a technological setting. While an automobile […]

by Andrea Vezzini Electric cars indeed operate emission-free when the pow­er for charging their batteries comes from renewable sources (Figure 1). Even when their power is generated from fossil sources, they show a good C02 balance, since they utilize the electrical energy very efficiently. Our mea­surements at the Bern University of Applied Sciences in Biel, […]

Between 1978 and 1986, in an international experiment ini­tiated by Japan, an OWC system was tested for the first time on a large scale: The ship Kamai’ carried out three series of tests in the Japan Sea in which turbines with up to a megawatt of power output were installed. Only in 1998 was the […]

The question arises as to whether setting up a whole new infrastructure for using hydrogen as a motor fuel does not represent a serious obstacle to its widespread use. The an­swer is given by a study which was commissioned by the German Federal government to evaluate the marketability of fuel-cell powered vehicles, and thus paid […]

In designing the electrical drive components of a hybrid or all-electric vehicle, the drive power and the weight of the on-board battery must be optimized. One of the great ad­vantages of an all-electric drive is the possibility of operat­ing the drive motor for a short time at a multiple of its av­erage maximum power. The […]

Why does wave power not yet come “out of the wall socket“? As we have already described, the installation of the power plants in the rough loca­tions where they must be operated is difficult. Their design must guarantee a long operating life. A further hurdle is the developement of turbines which are suitable for OWCs. […]