Bloom Energy

I am very heartened by what has been achieved by this company. If this technology is true and successful, it could solve all the global wrangling for energy, wars, global warming etc. Think about the potential it has for electrical cars of the future. I can think almost every application that needs energy could benefit from this. I am sure this tech when matured will power my home for sure. Dr. Sridhar is what Mr. Edison was for light bulbs. The ... More >>

I am very heartened by what has been achieved by this company. If this technology is true and successful, it could solve all the global wrangling for energy, wars, global warming etc. Think about the potential it has for electrical cars of the future. I can think almost every application that needs energy could benefit from this. I am sure this tech when matured will power my home for sure. Dr. Sridhar is what Mr. Edison was for light bulbs. The world as we knew ended that day and headed to become better. This technology will impact humanity in the same way. << Less

What is this company doing? Go to their website, and you see a lovely portrayal of a globe, and nothing more. They are going for the whole subtle and mysterious thing. So what are they working on? After a little digging, I found out. Bloom Energy, unfortunately along with many other companies (so why the mystery?), is pursuing the development of new solid oxide fuel cells, or SOFCs. A relatively new technology, solid oxide fuel cells use a ceram... More >>

What is this company doing? Go to their website, and you see a lovely portrayal of a globe, and nothing more. They are going for the whole subtle and mysterious thing. So what are they working on? After a little digging, I found out. Bloom Energy, unfortunately along with many other companies (so why the mystery?), is pursuing the development of new solid oxide fuel cells, or SOFCs. A relatively new technology, solid oxide fuel cells use a ceramic electrolyte in a cathodic reaction to convert chemical energy in fuels to electrical energy. Bloom Energy claims to "almost certainly have a commercial product ready within a year or two."<br /> <br /> <br /> The use of SOFCs as an energy source has many benefits. They are quite efficient, converting nearly 70% of energy into a usable form, as compared to the best current power plants which operate around 30-40% efficiency. Most of this energy is lost as heat, or in the distribution of electricity along wires to homes and locations far away from the power plants. Aside from efficiency, they can be run on many different types of fuel, have virtually no emissions (no combustion), and are very stable over a long period of time. These cells are essentially analogous to a battery that never dies – they are fed with a continuous stream of fuel from which chemical energy is converted. <br /> <br /> <br /> So where's the catch? Well, for starters – the cost. These fuel cells, since they typically operate around 700-1000 degrees Celsius (for the non-metric folk, about 1292-1832 degrees Fahrenheit) require very special (and expensive) materials to construct. Conservative estimates seem to suggest that Bloom Energy's product (which is aimed at consumers powering an individual home) would still theoretically cost a significant amount over $10,000. To be a viable solution and not a novelty device, Bloom Energy would have to find a way to reduce this initial cost. And let's not forget these "bloom boxes" still use hydrocarbon-based fuels, just not in a combustion reaction. <br /> <br /> <br /> Bloom Energy is apparently attempting to target underdeveloped areas where a stable electrical grid has not been established and where stand-alone units could prosper. I think that development of these fuel cells could have amazing promise in the future – at very least as a temporary and stable solution. The question that remains however, is whether Bloom Energy can design and manufacture these fuel cells to be both reasonably priced and unique enough to surpass the many other companies currently toying with SOFC technology. <br /> Bloom Energy, with 6 to 7 years of development already behind them and $200 million floating around in their project, could certainly achieve this in the near future. <br /> <br /> Will it be successful? It's really hard to say, since many other companies are undertaking a similar solution – it's a question of which one will succeed and profit from their efforts and research first. At the present time, I think that the technology is certainly a reasonable target for an energy solution, Bloom Energy is well positioned to work with it, and apparently quite far underway. If they can produce a practical device ahead of the competition, there won't be much to stop this niche from exploding into a huge shift form centralized power plants to individual home energy production.<br /> << Less