Lecturer: Professor Kameshima, Faculty of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama University

On February 24, the 4th seminar was held on the theme of “Thinking about the future of energy: How to use fuel cells for energy efficiency”.

First, Fujii, Representative of Board of the association, introduced the background and philosophy behind the establishment of the association and its activities under the title of “Toward the Realization of Hinomaru Solar Reborn,” followed by a lecture by Professor Yoshikazu Kameshima of the Faculty of Environmental and Life Science, Okayama University, who is also an advisor to the association, on “Development of on-demand fuel cells and their application”.

-There is a correlation between carbon dioxide emissions and the amount of electricity generated.

Professor Kameshima introduced that the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has been constantly above 400ppm, the highest level in the past 500,000 years. He shows data that Japan is the fifth largest emitter of carbon dioxide in the world despite its small land area (China is first, the U.S. second, India third, and Russia fourth), and that there is a correlation between the amount of carbon dioxide emissions and the amount of electricity generated in each country. He also pointed out that Japan, which has low energy self-sufficiency, must consider this perspective as well, and that the key to reducing CO2 emissions is to reduce electricity consumption and to use alternative resources and energy sources.

-High-efficiency power generation methods with fewer energy conversions are important.

Professor Kameshima added, “Currently, our most important energy source is electricity. We are currently converting energy repeatedly into electricity. In contrast to conventional thermal power generation, solar cells and fuel cells are highly efficient because they can directly convert energy into electricity.” In particular, fuel cells (power generation devices that continuously generate electricity by reacting fuels such as hydrogen, which can be replenished, and oxygen in the air at room temperature or high temperature) are attracting attention, and are beginning to be widely used for households and other applications. He also emphasized the advantage of using fuel cells on demand, which allows for effective use of thermal energy.

-If methane and other fuels can be used directly as fuels, fuel cells can be expected to spread more widely.

Finally, while presenting research data from Professor Kameshima’s team, he summarized, “If we can use methane and biogas directly as fuel, we can expect a wider range of fuel cells, and we believe that we can create on-demand ones that are more closely connected to households and communities than ever before.”

A roundtable discussion by Professor Kameshima and Fujii followed, delving deeper into the content of the lecture.

-Factors contributing to Japan being the world’s fifth largest emitter of carbon dioxide

-Advantages of using greenhouse gas such as methane directly as fuel and recovery methods

-Biomass energy utilization based on regional characteristics

-Future development of fuel cells and pyrolysis equipment