Fuel cells

After surfing the Internet to educate myself on ethanol, I recalled a previous hype-cycle about fuel cells, which occurred during the early 2000's. After excessive blathering on the topic, the press and the public lost interest, but various commercial and governmental endeavors have continued, and the technology has advanced considerably over the last 5 years. Google for yourself and you will find commercial power plants, experimental laptop batteries, military marine uses, backup power generators, residential power sources, automotive systems, and public transportation.

Honda's technology in particular looks very interesting. In addition to a very advanced fuel cell car, they have produced technology for installation in the home to solve the considerable re-fueling issues that surround the use of fuel cells for autos. Perhaps another 10 years of expensive R&D, and one or two more hype cycles in between, will result in some significant uses.

Look here for an interesting and somewhat related article on the hydrogen economy.