Abstract
Fuel cell technology has garnered great support and interest around the world
in the past decade because of its huge market potential, positive impact on
air quality and radically different nature than currently available power
sources. The technology has witnessed a remarkable expansion in terms of new
installations worldwide and the immense growth in the shipments of the fuel
cell products. Besides, it has the potential to strengthen national energy
security by reducing dependence on imported petroleum.
According to our new research report, "Fuel Cell Industry Analysis", the fuel
cells market has a bright future ahead and will see wide acceptance given the
high growth in the global cumulative shipments at a CAGR of around 49% during
2005-2008. This increase is largely attributed to growing number of regions
launching high profile projects and a large number of countries increasing
their emission legislation standards.
We have classified the fuel cells as - Molten Carbonate Fuel Cells (MCFC),
Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cells (PEMFC), Solid Oxide Fuel Cells (SOFC) and
Direct Methanol Fuel Cells (DMFC). There has been a rising trend witnessed in
their installations and adoption in various application areas. We have found
that PEMFC and DMFC are primarily used for portable applications, while MCFC
and SOFC are used widely for stationary purposes. Besides, DMFC' s are also
used in some niche transportation sectors.
From the applications perspective, the report has broadly categorized the
applications of fuel cells for portable, transportation and stationary
purposes. The portable segment has emerged as the key power source owing to
the current limitations of batteries and generators in terms of efficiency and
emissions.
The report has given the global overview of the fuel cell industry and has
placed special focus on the developments taking place in various countries in
terms of the units manufactured and the investments being made in those
countries for research purposes. On the basis of our research and thorough
analysis, we foresee Japan, North America and Europe to emerge as the major
markets for the fuel cell technology by 2010.
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