Mannheim, May 3, 2007 ? The CropEnergies AG, Mannheim, the research and development department of the Südzucker AG, and several institutes of the Fraunhofer-Society cooperate to promote the usage of bioethanol in fuel cells for power supply and heating.
Fuel cells are the future technology for the power supply of electrical appliances. They have crucial advantages compared to competing technologies, such as their high operating efficiency even at partial load, the marginal noise and pollution emissions, the long operational life thanks to energy-rich fuels, the ease with which they can be refilled, and the independence of power and energy content. Therefore, forecasts show high growth rates in the fuel cell market in the next few years.
The areas of application of bioethanol fuel cells range from portable appliances such as mobile phones, on-board energy supply of trucks, busses or automobiles and leisure/ camping appliances to block heat and power plants which ? among other things ? can supply houses with energy.
Bioethanol is well suited for being used in fuel cells. Produced from renewable resources, it is climate friendly and a sustainable local energy source. Furthermore, considerable experience in handling bioethanol as well as the existing supply chain can help to establish fuel cells in mass markets permanently.
As one of the biggest European bioethanol producers, the CropEnergies AG will actively participate in the further development of bioethanol fuel cells. To this effect, a research cooperation with the Südzucker AG and several institutes of the Fraunhofer Society which are the Fraunhofer-Team Direct-Ethanol-Fuel-Cell, the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems (ISE) and the Fraunhofer Institute for Ceramic Technologies and Systems (IKTS) has been started.
The partners:
CropEnergies AG
The CropEnergies AG produces bioethanol from local renewable resources which is used as fuel for automobiles and in this way guarantees lasting mobility and at the same time contributes to the climate protection.
Fraunhofer Society
The Fraunhofer Society is the leading organisation for applied science in Europe. Its science is application-oriented to be used directly in companies and for the benefit of the society.
Südzucker AG Mannheim/Ochsenfurt
The Südzucker AG Mannheim/Ochsenfurt specialises on the large-scale manufacturing of agricultural products and their commercialisation. The research activities are concentrated on the development of high- quality food products and technical applications.