Apple Has Idea for Fuel Cell Battery That Would Last Weeks

[jeffjwatts]

"Apple's patent overview starts off by stating that the US is reliant on fossil fuels which has forced the government to maintain complicated political and military relationships with unstable governments in the Middle East, and has also exposed our coastlines and our citizens to the associated hazards of offshore drilling. These problems have led to an increasing awareness and desire on the part of consumers to promote and use renewable energy sources. "

This seems an absurd case of Green Washing. This is a fuel cell. It uses a "fuel" like natural gas or hydrogen. And how do we produce hydrogen? Yes, we get it from natural gas. And while natural gas is largely domestic, it still comes from drilled wells. This device does not in anyway whatsoever reduce the US demand for oil which is what the patent overview strongly implies.

-1 Misleading Propoganda

 

[makaveli316]

I'd rather see this technology not coming, than see it coming from Apple.

 

[billybobser]

Bemoaning US reliance on middle east, has all manufacturers in Asia.

Oh ha ha

 

[custodian-1]

the military have been using this technology for years

 

[fb39ca4]

Apple will just patent this.

 

[CaedenV]

Forget about fuel cell laptops, I'm still waiting for my fuel cell car that I did school reports on back in the mid '90s. Really, it is a MUCH better tech than these silly electric vehicles that use conventional batteries. You can produce the chems you need using bacteria and sunlight (or using nuclear power plants during low usage hours... but I am never going to win that battle), and the exhaust is just water and oxygen. Anyone driving a modern electric vehicle thinking they are 'saving the planet' is simply ignorant about how batteries are made/charged/disposed of. In the end we will find that battery-electric vehicles are worse for the environment than gas/desil cars of similar weight/size. Until we get solar or hydrogen fuel cells moving there is no benefit to moving away from fossil fuels.

Imagine a fuel cell netbook.... that would last months! lol

 

[JasonAkkerman]

That's all well and nice. Now, about that pesky problem of actually producing all that needed hydrogen efficiently

 

[silver565]

I wonder what the rule would be for taking them on aeroplanes? The compression could = boom?

 

[sinfulpotato]

[citation][nom]freggo[/nom]Ever seen what some types of capacitors do if used with reverse polarity ?[/citation]

They get embedded in the ceiling tiles. 😀

 

[darkchazz]

So if this thing runs out of juice, I have to take it to a gas station to refill it ?
😛

 

[iam2thecrowe]

another day another patent. Seriously, if you cant actually make it and have a prototype, you shouldn't be able to patent it. What will it take to get this patent system revised????? Can I sign a petition?

 

[silver565]

I'm pretty sure this idea infringes on someone else's patent. But then again... Apple is above the world right?

 

[f-14]

[citation][nom]jeffjwatts[/nom]"Apple's patent overview starts off by stating that the US is reliant on fossil fuels which has forced the government to maintain complicated political and military relationships with unstable governments in the Middle East, and has also exposed our coastlines and our citizens to the associated hazards of offshore drilling. These problems have led to an increasing awareness and desire on the part of consumers to promote and use renewable energy sources. "This seems an absurd case of Green Washing. This is a fuel cell. It uses a "fuel" like natural gas or hydrogen. And how do we produce hydrogen? Yes, we get it from natural gas. And while natural gas is largely domestic, it still comes from drilled wells. This device does not in anyway whatsoever reduce the US demand for oil which is what the patent overview strongly implies.-1 Misleading Propoganda[/citation]

yes, seem the only thing it promotes is more fracking, as if fracking with our water supply and highly toxic/poisonous chemicals aren't bad enough!
i guess with jobs out of the way cheney is running the show at apple now?

 

[DaddyW123]

Hydrogen doesn't actually explode, it burns. A hydrogen/Oxygen mix explodes... but even that doesn't have much of an expansive explosion.

Though I never got around to trying it, in college I wanted to make a water powered potato launcher, by using a car battery to split water into Hydrogen and Oxygen, collect the gas into a chamber behind the barrel and light it... but my freshman year chem professor said the explosion wouldn't be expansive enough, and the potato was likely to not go anywhere.
Again, this made me never get around to trying it, but I always wondered.

Anyway, if something were to go wrong with a hydrogen battery, it would likely just set your pants on fire, but not actually send shrapnel into your leg or anything.

 

[willwayne]

An actual patent instead of "Slide to Unlock"??

This I could back. Too bad Apple wouldn't allow licensing of the technology to anyone.

 

[nurgletheunclean]

No need to worry about this patent. The chances of this going into production before the patent expires is 0.

Who cares if the life is a week when there's no way to refill it.
Apple won't let you change the battery in the i-phone. They certainly aren't going to kill the golden goose of expensive, disposable, engineered obsolesence, gadgets.

Fuel cell for cars is a pipe dream too. It's hard enough to find a filling station that has diesel, or e85, and those are liquid at room temp. To build the refueling infrastructure for H is probably never going to happen. Sure you may see it in some niche places for things like Buses in a metro area but it's not going to going to have a national presence anywhere close to that of liquid fuels.

 

[eddieroolz]

[citation][nom]memadmax[/nom]Doesn't hydrogen explode?[/citation]

It is quite dangerous when mishandled, but at the same time we drive around carrying tanks of volatile fuel that releases explosive force greater than TNT in its weight.

Also, speaking strictly about batteries Lithium-Ion is also known to be quite dangerous when mishandled.

 

[iLLz]

[citation][nom]otacon72[/nom]With Apple's track record of exploding batteries a hydrogen fuel cell explosion is not exactly a comforting thought.[/citation]

^^^ This!

I was thinking this exact thing when I read the title to this article. My second though was, oh shit, they are going to try to patent fuel cells and sue anyone else who uses them.

 

[tomfreak]

So When it is the time Apple join Game developer? we need them to move the game industry to more realistic gaming, require high end PC than some stupid console port.

 

[okibrian]

[citation][nom]dxwarlock[/nom]No thanks, time extended battery aside.Just what I always wanted..a phone I had to put fuel in to keep it running.at airport, battery dying? no simple plug and charge for you! you now have to go find fuel for your phone. or by the iFuel accessory for $400 that refuels your phone on the go![/citation]
Wow, you put that out there for people to be able to read for all of time. You really should have checked your facts first. Just because the word ‘fuel’ is used does not mean you pull up to your local BP and put gas in your phone.