A new device that could bring electric cars closer to practical use for daily driving has been invented by the U.S. Department of Energy's Argonne National Laboratory . Because it is more compact than other reformers, it could enable fuel cells to power electric cars.
Fuel cells are like a batteries with fuel tanks.
Unlike batteries, they produce electricity as long as they have fuel, and they never need recharging. The Department of Energy is currently investigating them as possible electric-vehicle power sources. Small enough to fit under a car hood, the device can remove hydrogen from methanol to power a small fuel cell that produces electricity. A major problem in using fuel cells to power electric cars, Kumar said, is that they are fueled by hydrogen, a very light gas that is difficult to store. Currently available hydrogen-storage technologies are so heavy and bulky that they would limit the driving range of any car that used them.