ZENN’s third-quarter earnings aren’t looking good, and neither it seems is its relationship with EEStor. I can only speculate, of course, because the company is saying squat, but the language of the press release gives us a few hints:

The company is “developing high-voltage drivetrain solutions that can best take advantage of the unique capabilities represented by anticipated high-voltage energy sources such as EEStor Inc.’s technolog.” In the past, it was all EEStor and nothing but the EEStor. Something has changed, or ZENN is merely trying to prepare itself for possible failure in Cedar Park. It is also pursuing patents for complementary technologies “applicable to both EEStor and non-EEStor energy storage systems.” Here the company is emphasizing alternatives, as well as other technologies beyond storage that it may be able to transition its business around. Personally, it sounds a stretch.

Other comments: “The Company is also actively engaged in opportunities to establish relationships with, or invest in, third-party companies that can provide complementary technologies that will enhance the Company’s overall solutions offering.” If EEStor is for real and does deliver, it won’t need complementary technologies, right?

Final comments from CEO Ian Clifford are also a bit wishy-washy.

“We continue to move forward with investments in engineering and business development initiatives that we believe will deliver the greatest long-term shareholder value,” stated Clifford, who is basically saying Don’t worry, if EEStor falls through we’ll have other pokers in the fire.

What he doesn’t say is where EEStor is at, and what shareholders can expect from that relationship. Given that the investment in EEStor is all there is to ZENN, you’d think it would be incumbent upon Clifford to say much more.

One of my recent Clean Break columns looks at attempts to lower the cost of hydrogen production, with specific reference to a project at the University of Ontario Institute of Technology. UOIT professors Greg Naterer and Ibrahim Dincer are attempting to building a machine that can create hydrogen from sunlight and water by simulating photosynthesis, an approach based on research conducted at Virginia Tech. Researchers there, led by Professor Karen Brewer, have developed a super molecule that acts as a photocatalyst. When sunlight is shined on water containing this catalyst, it breaks the hydrogen-oxygen bond and releases the hydrogen for collection. Photocatalysts offer a low-energy approach to breaking this H20 bond, compared to steam-methane reforming or electrolysis, but the problem with past efforts is that the catalysts were consumed in the process. This creates the need for a constant supply of catalyst, which can become costly. The photocatalyst developed by Brewer’s team is not consumed — it can be recycled over and over again, which is why the approach shows so much promise. It has been demonstrated to work in the lab, now UOIT has been charged with building a prototype machine that can demonstrate the technology at scale. It has received $900,000 in funding from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council (NSERC) and Toronto-based Phoenix Canada Oil Co., which owns the rights to Virginia Tech’s technology. For more detail check out the article.

There are many efforts to turn the sun’s energy into fuel — such as hydrogen, syngas, etc. – and the U.S. Department of Energy recently committed $122 million toward such research. Indeed, Professor Daniel Nocera at MIT has been leading the charge, and is now involved with a company called Sun Catalytix which is aiming to commercialize a process invented by Nocera. If we can figure out how to produce large amounts of hydrogen in a clean and low-cost way it can lead to affordable energy storage and, some day, even fuel for transportation.

I got into a little exchange with Prof. Naterer about the potential for hydrogen-powered transportation. In my column I wrote that “Hydrogen-powered cars might not be in the cards for the next two or three decades.” This may be a bit of an exaggeration, but maybe not. (more…)

What’s life after the lithium-ion battery look like? Is it supercapacitors? All-electron batteries? Something we haven’t dreamed up yet? The New York Times has a great overview (courtesy of ClimateWire) of lithium-air batteries, which represent a class of batteries called metal-air that two decades from now could be the dream battery we wish we had today. Scientists say lithium-air batteries could pack enough energy to rival the range of vehicles that burn gasoline. There’s one not-so-small problem, however. They can explode when exposed to water. Personally, I see greater potential in zinc-air batteries, which sacrifice a bit of energy density in exchange for safety and resource abundance.

Anyway, check out the NYT article. It’s a month old, but I thought it was an informative read.

Since it’s been all-too-quiet on the EEStor front, I figured I’d at least draw attention to the company’s latest patent approval — this one titled “Systems and Methods for Utility Grid Power Averaging, Long Term Uninterruptible Power Supply…”

A link to the patent, which was just approved a few days ago by the U.S. patent office, can be found here at the TheEEStory.com. EEStor and ZENN appear to be in complete lock down — no information is flowing from either. I’ve being hearing chatter in the investment community that EEStor has run into some technical (not financial) trouble, but then again, I’ve been hearing this kind of chatter for the past few years since I wrote my first feature on the company in the Toronto Star. I tried to arrange a visit to EEStor’s headquarters in Cedar Park, Texas, for some time this summer. I wanted to gather some information for a book I’m working on that will be released next fall, but Weir — despite my offer to sign a non-disclosure — wouldn’t allow it. He wished me luck and said he doesn’t want or need the attention. (The book, by the way, isn’t just about EEStor, but EEStor will represent a chapter in it. The book will be about barriers to energy innovation… stay tuned).

Fair enough.

The explanation in the patent of how an EESU could benefit the grid is pretty straight forward, so this is really no surprise. But it’s nice to see the company beginning to accumulate a sizable stockpile of patents to protect its IP. Despite the silence out of Cedar Park (and Toronto), I do find it interesting that there are some other ventures hot on EEStor’s heels, just as Weir was expecting. On April 29, for example, the U.S. Department of Energy announced funding as part of its ARPA-E program. One recipient of funding was venture spun out of Penn State University called Recapping Inc., which received $1 million. (more…)

There’s much hype around the 60 Minutes segment Sunday night about Bloom Energy and its miraculous Bloom Box. I’m scratching my head wondering why this is such a big deal, so maybe someone can enlighten me. This to me seems like a fancy solid-oxide fuel cell system. It’s still super expensive, though Bloom claims that it can get the cost down to $3,000 (U.S.) for a residential unit. It still relies on fuel, such as natural gas, meaning it still produces CO2 emissions. Yes, far less emissions than burning that natural gas in a power plant and sending it via transmission lines to your home, but it’s not the emission-free miracle that 60 Minutes is touting. I didn’t hear much talk on the segment about whether the Bloom Box has a dual purpose: that is, electricity generation and heat production. And while it may replace the need for electricity lines coming into your home, you still need a natural gas line. In this sense, I can see tremendous interest from natural gas utilities looking to compete against electric utilities (a good parallel is how cable and phone companies over the years ended up offering the same services as technologies converged).

Perhaps there’s more to this story that wasn’t revealed by 60 Minutes, but there are many companies out there working on this kind of fuel cell so I don’t see what’s particularly special or unique about Bloom Energy. More details are expected to be released on Wednesday, however, so maybe then my questions will be answered.

In the meantime, would someone out there please enlighten me?