The metals needed to construct a cell are extremely expensive, which makes it impractical for a company to mass-produce. And hydrogen, for all its abundance, is difficult to transport or store because of its volatility. The company's research led to lighter fuel cells made of less-expensive materials needed to produce the reaction between hydrogen and oxygen. Other advances followed, including the use of a fuel processor, which extracts hydrogen from commonly available fuels such as natural gas, methanol, ethanol or even gasoline. The hydrogen, however, would not be pure, meaning the cell would produce small amounts of greenhouse gases, which are believed to cause the depletion of the ozone layer.
Demand is the unknown now.
Vancouver, B.C., and Chicago are testing city buses running on Ballard cells. But markets for those vehicles remain years away. Experts say the first market demand for fuel cells will probably be electricity generation for homes and businesses. With the ongoing deregulation of the power industry, utilities will have to compete for customers able to purchase electricity from a variety of sources, including micropower companies that sell fuel cells, natural-gas microturbines and solar cells. And one of those choices is to produce your own power.