Metal fuels: the fuel of tomorrow

Hydrogen is increasingly cited as the way to store renewable energy. But it doesn't always work everywhere. For example, hydrogen is not very compact, so you need a lot of it. The element is also highly flammable, which makes it less practical for storage in residential areas. In the latest TU/e podcast episode of Sound of Science, Professor of Combustion Technology Philip de Goey tells presenter Lieven Scheire about the possibilities of the alternative iron powder. 

World first

Burning metal powder is CO2-free, safe, reusable and has a high energy density. And unlike sun and wind, these metals are always and everywhere available. De Goey demonstrated that this works last year at beer brewer Bavaria. Together with Team Solid, a TU/e student team, he developed a test setup in which iron was used to generate energy. This showed that metal does work as a fuel in heat- and energy-intensive industries. 

In the episode of the science podcast Sound of Science, Philip de Goey and Sjirk Hatenboer, technical manager of Team Solid, talk about iron flames, steamboats that run on iron, and the importance of student teams and collaboration with industry.

Listen to TU/e podcast

Click here to listen to the podcast or go to your favorite podcast platform and search for 'Sound of Science'.