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Friday, Mar 29, 2024

Startup Makes Cheap Hydrogen

Hydrogen is the most abundant element in the universe. It is also, according to Mike Rocke, president of Camarillo startup H24US, the cleanest energy source for making power. “It is a very clean power technology,” Rocke said. “I think one of the cleanest technologies in the world. Even cleaner than batteries because you don’t have all the lithium and the cobalt and similar issues associated with the manufacturing of batteries.” The mission of the six employees at H24US (pronounced “H two for us”) is to bring more hydrogen to the world. They have developed a new method for creating hydrogen using a membrane made of carbon polymers with a patent-pending process. “You simply pass the gases through our membrane and hydrogen goes through and the other heavier gases do not,” Rocke explained. “Our (way) is much more cost effective in separating hydrogen from these gas mixtures.” Existing technology for making hydrogen can employ the use of precious metals like platinum and palladium that select out the hydrogen, Rocke added. “We do not use expensive metals and we can make our membranes for much cheaper,” he said. Incubator spinoff H24US is a spinoff from Camarillo incubator Global FFT, founded by Mike and Charity Cheiky. Mike Cheiky was a serial entrepreneur who also founded such companies as Zpower Inc., the micro-battery manufacturer in Camarillo; Cool Planet Energy Systems Inc. in Colorado; defunct fuel injector manufacturer Transonic Combustion Inc., also in Camarillo; and V-Grid Energy Systems Inc., also located in Camarillo. Mike Cheiky died in 2017. His widow Charity is chief executive of H24US and vice president of office operations at V-Grid Energy. The company has received funding from the incubator, although Rocke would not disclose the amount. “It is not much money – just enough to validate the concept and get this thing going,” Rocke said. Morry Markowitz, president of the Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Energy Association, an industry trade group in Washington, D.C., called hydrogen a versatile fuel source that can be used in transportation, manufacturing, and for stationary, portable and backup power. “The availability of hydrogen as a transformational fuel is very important to the United States as we move from a fossil-based industry to one in the future where we care about the environment,” Markowitz said. In November. the association released a study, “Road Map to a U.S. Hydrogen Economy,” that outlined what needs to happen to create a hydrogen market, such as incentives and the distribution changes. “A vibrant hydrogen industry would maintain U.S. energy leadership and security, create jobs, significantly reduce carbon emissions and support economic growth,” the study’s executive summary stated. The global market potential for hydrogen is in the multibillions of dollars, Rocke said. “Toyota makes a hydrogen fuel cell car (the Mirai); Honda makes one (the Clarity) and now Hyundai makes one (the Nexo),” Rocke said. “And you can fill these up at 44 hydrogen filling stations in California. There are more up in Washington and they are starting to make some on the East Coast.” The great thing about hydrogen fuel technology in the transportation sector is that it is the only zero emission technology out there now and for the foreseeable future that totally replicates the current driving experience, Markowitz said. “You can drive 300 to 400 miles on a tankful of fuel and can refuel in three to five minutes,” he added. One of the issues with hydrogen is its high cost per kilogram, Rocke said. According to the website of the California Fuel Cell Partnership, a collaborative effort by government and private industry to commercialize hydrogen and fuel cell electric vehicles, the cost of hydrogen ranges from $12.85 to more than $16 per kilogram, with the most common price being $13.99 per kilogram, or the equivalent on a price per energy basis to $5.60 per gallon of gasoline. It is H24US’ stated goal of getting that price closer to the $3 to $4 range, or the current cost of a gallon of gas, Rocke said. “So H24US was started by us as a way to create a cost-effective solution for taking hydrogen out of gas mixtures that are currently being produced in refineries,” Rocke added. “It is a cost-effective solution to drive the cost of hydrogen down faster so that people can use it quicker and can get to net zero carbon faster.”

Mark Madler
Mark Madler
Mark R. Madler covers aviation & aerospace, manufacturing, technology, automotive & transportation, media & entertainment and the Antelope Valley. He joined the company in February 2006. Madler previously worked as a reporter for the Burbank Leader. Before that, he was a reporter for the City News Bureau of Chicago and several daily newspapers in the suburban Chicago area. He has a bachelor’s of science degree in journalism from the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.

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