Brazil has proven that sugarcane-based ethanol is a great alternative to gasoline. Now comes news , via AZoNano News (”The A to Z of Nanotechnology”), that researchers from Oita University in Japan have developed an experimental fuel cell that uses sunlight to convert glucose (sugar) into hydrogen to power itself. The article, sourcing the info to the International Journal of Global Energy Issues, says renewable sources of biomass such as starch, cellulose, sucrose, and lactose can be converted into glucose “with little energy cost through fermentation processes.”
It’s experimental and the device only produces “several hundred millivolts,” but just imagine the possibilities if it scales.
To recap: Sugar in your gas tan - bad. Sugar in your fuel cell - good.
