NEC Develops Smaller Fuel Cell for Notebook PCs - New Product

NEC Corporation today announced the development of a fuel cell with 20% greater power generating efficiency than the PC built in fuel cell announced on June 30th, 2003. A prototype notebook PC incorporating this compact fuel cell has also been produced.

NEC will demonstrate this prototype notebook PC with a built-in fuel cell at WPC EXPO 2003, an international PC exhibition to be held from September 17 to 20 at Makuhari Messe in Chiba Prefecture.

The newly developed fuel cell boasts the world's highest output density of 50mW/cm² and the refinement of the packaging technology allowed reduction in size of the fuel cell module by 20% while maintaining sufficient power to drive a notebook PC.

Since the first announcement in August 2001 of a compact fuel cell for mobile terminals which uses carbon nanotubes for electrodes, NEC has been committed to research and development in this field of technology. This fuel cell features high power generating efficiency through the use of carbon nano-horns, a kind of carbon nanotube, as electrodes.

NEC plans to market a notebook PC with a built-in fuel cell by the end of 2004. It also intends to make a notebook PC equipped with an internal fuel cell that offers 40 hours of continuous operation available by the end of 2005.

The development of the prototype was aided by a project for developing technologies and products applying nano-carbon technology, jointly organized by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) and the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO).

Details of the fuel cell include the following:

• Average output (maximum output): 14W (24W)
• Voltage: 12V
• Fuel Cell Weight (weight of fuel): 900g (300g)
• Weight of PC with fuel cell: 2kg
• PC dimensions: 270 x 270 x 40 (mm)
• Operating time: Approximately 5 hours (using 300cc of methanol fuel with a concentration of approx. 10%)

Posted 17^th September 2003