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 The current standard in hydrogen production is steam reforming. Steam reforming uses high temperature steam (about 700 - 900° C) to break the bond between carbon and hydrogen to produce hydrogen. This process is commercially viable in industrial applications but not for fuel cells used in motor vehicles, small residential electrical generation or small battery powered consumer products; steam reformers are too large and costly for these applications. Steam reforming, in a non-industrial setting, must overcome problems of cold start-ups, slow and undynamic response and high costs to be commercially viable. The objective of PowerNova's process is to produce hydrogen at about 200° C from hydrocarbons. The low temperature chemical reaction is important, because it results in a much less expensive system due to the lower costs of mechanical design and the utilization of more conventional materials as opposed to exotic alloys.
Upon successful completion of the R&D, the implications of PowerNova's process are significant as it would represent a watershed breakthrough in hydrogen production. The breakthrough addresses the problem of hydrogen delivery, which is the biggest obstacle to the widespread adoption of fuel cells. The fuel of PowerNova's process would be easily transportable liquid hydrocarbon, which overcomes the infrastructure and storage issues.
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