Plasma Kinetics Light-Activated Hydrides

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Plasma Kinetics makes light-activated hydrides. It removed the hydrogen from a hydride using light. It system is safe, clean, and scalable and holds more energy than a lithium-ion battery, costing less, and recharges in 5 minutes. This is an energy storage technology that Sandy Munro believes is workable.

PK is the first company to pursue hydrogen in the form of a light-activated nano-structured thin film. Plasma Kinetics’ success is in our unique ability to filter out hydrogen from exhaust gases “like a sponge” with low temperature and pressure – reducing cost. Captured hydrogen is contained indefinitely, releasing with light on demand. Plasma Kinetics advancements offer the means for zero-carbon hydrogen, it’s an economical and safe hydrogen transport and infrastructure system. Our technology scales to fit the power demand of any application.

Plasma Kinetics patent portfolio includes five U.S. patents with more than 40 granted claims. They have patents in Canada, Japan and Korea and patents pending in multiple countries around the world. Plasma Kinetics introduced Light Activated Energy Storage (LAES) hydrogen storage technology to the U.S. Department of Energy in July 2009. The DOE Advanced Research Projects Division stated that our technology had “the potential to have a high transformational impact”.

Transforming Power
Plasma Kinetics is planning the introduction of 19L containers with 500 g of H2 for mobile applications (aircraft, vehicles, and boats). Larger containers of 67 m3 and 76 m3 will have 500 kg and 1000 kg of H2. The larger containers are used for hydrogen production, storage, and delivery to stationary or large mobile (ship and rail) applications. All products are lighter, smaller, and less expensive than lithium-ion batteries. All products are zero-carbon and are also reusable and recyclable.

Plasma Kinetics proprietary nanophotonic material absorbs hydrogen at standard atmospheric pressure and temperature. The material absorbs metric tons of hydrogen in minutes. Hydrogen is released by controlled light at 99.99+% purity.

Plasma Kinetics employs a layered nanophotonic structure with proprietary shape memory alloy that interacts with light. Individual layers are only angstroms thick, and nanolithography provides surface structures that support release of hydrogen with light.

They capture green solar-to-hydrogen or wind-to-hydrogen from electrolysis without pressure. Storage is 30% lighter, 7% smaller, and 17% less expensive than Lithium-ion battery per kWh. Plasma Kinetics Energy Systems are heavier and larger than compressed gas above 350 bar. Plasma Kinetics technology is more ecological and economical than compressed H2 without needing reforming energy, pump energy, pressure or carbon-fiber tanks.

Plasma Kinetics technology does not require a compressed gas infrastructure to produce, move, distribute or deliver hydrogen. 19L containers provided at convenience stores allow customers to return empty containers in exchange for recharged containers. Non-flammable hydrogen storage allows transported via air, truck, rail, or ship without restriction. Swapping containers takes less than 5 minutes and recharging of containers takes 5 to 30 minutes. Vehicles and aircraft can be hot-swappable (without engine shut-off) to allow more time on the road or in the air.

SOURCES- Plasma Kinetics, Sandy Munro
Written By Brian Wang, Nextbigfuture.com

6 thoughts on “Plasma Kinetics Light-Activated Hydrides”

  1. Does the tape substrate sufficiently shield the the nanophotonic thin film from seeing that release light frequency being applied to a particular tape segment, or is the assumption that that tape canister will be dark? I would be really afraid of a photodetonation event if the canister case is compromised…

  2. Even if you could get the hydrogen for nearly free, you need to build out a transportation/delivery infrastructure, which will be expensive. Any efficiency gains to the ICE have already been made, and a hydrogen engine uses a very similar process. You're not going to double the efficiency of an H-car in 10 years.

    Meanwhile, battery technology is improving by leaps and bounds. And there's already a transportation/delivery method for electricity. As electric cars become the norm, there will be great profit in making even small improvements in battery tech. It's not unfeasible for batteries to become twice as efficient in 10 years. Rather, it's projected.

    I really don't see a future for hydrogen cars. It will always be a niche market.
    This is the new Betamax, Zune, and HD-DVD all rolled into one.

  3. You clearly just copy pasted the hype blurbs from the company's website. "we will, soon we", Fake News.

  4. Hundreds of times isn't a problem if the company maintains ownership and recycling/reconditioning of the cartridges. After all, the content is the important thing. The main thing is that it's easily swapped out.
    I'm envisioning an LPG-gas cylinder or water-bottle type program where customers pay for the contents only, while the supplier owns the container (cartridge) and has to be returned when its contents are exhausted.

  5. "Magnesium is used in both Plasma Kinetics energy storage systems
    and metal hydride storage systems. Plasma Kinetics storage interacts
    with light. Metal hydrides do not interact with light." The metal *paste* version does not attempt to save the Mag, I don't think, where this uses it 100s of times before having to repackage or re manufacture. Changing the tape in a canister that is hot-swappable every 100 uses does not seem too bad. Let the market decide! The cryo superconductor use of the cold H may be even better, who knows?

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