Several companies are experimenting with employing micro fuel cells as power converters for mobile devices. One solution produces flat fuel cells made of polymer and metallic films based on wafer and film technologies. Another solution involves a search for different ways to produce hydrogen utilizing chemical hydrides such as borohydride or borazan to generate hydrogen through heat or water, or other catalysts.

However, the most commonly used fuel cell technology converts liquid methanol to hydrogen using direct methanol fuel cells (DMFC). For years, established brands such as Toshiba Corp of Japan and IBM have been promising commercialization of fuel cell technology. Toshiba is widely recognized as the industry leader in DMFC development. The company has been working on a test DMFC prototype in two versions: one is geared for Flash-based MP3 players, the other is specifically designed for devices with a hard disk drive device.

Samsung Electronics is also seizing the fuel cell initiative. In May, the company announced that it has signed a deal with MTI Micro Fuel Cells of New York the US, to develop mobile phones that can run on fuel cells. According to reports, Samsung will commit US$1 million to MTI for development.

DMFC Modules
In Taiwan, Antig Technology is moving closer to delivering DMFC modules to its customers, which could potentially include some of the largest electronics contract manufacturers in the world. Antig is focusing on coming up with a DMFC solution for notebook PCs. According to marketing manager Linnet Tsai, Antig's close proximity to leading notebook manufacturers such as Quanta, Compal Electronics, and Asus gives it some advantages to design-in its DMFC components with hardware vendors.

Antig is leading the fuel cell effort in Taiwan by forming a SoC PCB DMFC Working Group for IC, PCB, and hardware development of fuel cell solutions for portable electronics gadgets.
For notebook fuel cell solutions on the market, Antig has adopted a module system-on-cell concept which would allow disposable packets of DMFCs to charge laptops through a SoC PCB module inserted in a notebook PC's media bay.

Tsai said that Antig's "integrated" module solution differs from some of the solutions offered by larger manufacturers based in Japan. "Antig's DMFC cartridge will fit right inside a laptop, while Toshiba offers a docking solution and Fujitsu has integrated a slot at the back of a monitor's back panel," he said.

Hampered by form-factor and cost obstacles, Antig foresees its first phase of DMFC deployment will kick in by 2007, with solutions that offer a combination of conventional lithium-ion polymer and fuel cell hybrid. The complete transition to fuel cell power is expected to be completed by the second half of 2008. Antig said that a major EMS in Taiwan has decided to design-in its SoC PCB module, but it is unable to reveal the name of the manufacturer. However, it could reveal that Taiwan-based Asia Vital Component will produce the disposable DMFC cartridges.

But even if Antig's contract manufacturing partners decided to adopt its DMFC solution tomorrow, users would still need to pay two to three times more for two to three extra hours of charge.

Finished DMFC solutions require safety and environmental certification, which could take some time to pass. Also, DMFC manufacturers will have to find ways to increase the charge time while keeping the form factor close to an acceptable size for consumers. DMFC prices would also remain high due to the prohibitively high cost of membrane electrode assemblies (MEA) for fuel cells, which take up the bulk of bill of materials (BOM) costs. 3M is currently the dominant supplier of MEA, and prices are not likely to fall anytime soon.

Once these obstacles are lifted, Tsai envisions methanol fuel to be carried and delivered to the cell via a low-cost cartridge, bought at the local convenience store and likely manufactured by a familiar name such as Bic or Gillette. The cartridge would be inserted, the fuel loaded and then the cartridge removed and disposed of.