The DMFC is an extremely efficient energy source for vehicle applications. Because of its efficiency, the DMFC does not have to overcome the Btu penalty associated with internal combustion engines. For use in a DMFC, the current methanol market price would offer considerable savings in fuel costs compared to gasoline. All three interfaces take advantage of the benefits of using a liquid, room temperature fuel. Of course, the direct methanol fuel cell is the option that takes best advantage of these benefits.
Methanol is well poised to supply a future fuel cell market.
Made largely from domestic natural gas, methanol is widely available and broadly distributed. And the cost to produce methanol is coming down, with recent announcements of improved production technologies that will soon reduce capital costs by 30 percent and improve energy usage by 10 percent. And methanol can be produced from renewable resources. Any carbon source, such as seaweed, garbage and even sewage sludge can be used to produce methanol. While its is more economic to produce methanol from natural gas today, a broader market to meet the large-scale deployment of fuel cell vehicles and other applications will make it much more attractive to develop renewable methanol technologies.