Fuji Electric introduces new hydrogen fuel production system

Fuji has high hopes for hydrogen fuel

Fuji Electric, a massive electrical equipment and holding company based in Japan, has announced that it has developed a product designed specifically for hydrogen fuel production. This product is meant to be incorporated into existing fuel cell products in order to make them more alluring to the Japanese market. Hydrogen fuel has managed to capture a great deal of interest in this market, but much of this has been reserved to the transportation sector. Fuji Electric believes that there are many promising opportunities for hydrogen fuel beyond transportation.

New system produces hydrogen through the use of methane

The new hydrogen fuel production technology is capable of converting methane gas into hydrogen. This makes it particularly attractive to fuel cell systems that are used in sewage treatment. Fuji Electric claims that the system will cost approximately 40% less than conventional gas engine technologies for the same purpose. The company hopes to take advantage of an incentive program launched by the Japanese government in 2012 in order to promote the system.

Fuel cells could have a promising future in sewage treatment

Hydrogen fuel cells and sewage treatment often go hand-in-hand. Fuel cells are able to use polluted waters to generate electricity and as these waters are used in a fuel cell, they are purified by the intense heat that the process generates. Moreover, sewage treatment facilities are typically a promising source of methane gas, which can be used to produce hydrogen fuel that can be used by fuel cells. If enough methane can be tapped into, fuel cells can be used to power the sewage treatment process entirely.

Japan continues to show strong support for hydrogen fuel

Fuji Electric plans to sell 20 of its new hydrogen fuel production systems this year. The demand for such systems is relatively modest as the prospects of hydrogen fuel cells are not yet widely embraced. Japan is home to one of the world’s largest hydrogen fuel cell networks, called the ENE-FARM, which has helped draw more attention to the possible benefits of hydrogen fuel.