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HANOVER, GERMANY -- Toshiba used the CeBIT trade show here to demonstrate for the first time an operating prototype fuel cell for notebook PCs, but the company--citing size, weight, and regulatory concerns--said it will not commercialize the technology for about another three years.

The company previously said that it intended to have its direct methanol fuel cell for notebook PCs ready for the market in 2004, but the schedule has slipped several times.

DMFCs are being developed to replace batteries for portable electronic devices. They typically work by mixing methanol with air and water to produce electrical power. Only methanol is required as fuel, and the byproducts are heat and water.

The prototype shown at CeBIT produces about 20 watts of electricity and can power an A5-size Portege M300 notebook PC for about 10 hours on a single charge of nearly 100 percent methanol, according to the company.

Toshiba declined to give exact specifications, but the prototype is about a liter in volume and weighs about a kilogram. It needs to be shrunk to about half or a third of its present size and weight before it is put on sale, says Tomoaki Arimura, a specialist at the company's Methanol Fuel Cell Group.

"This size is not suitable for mobile applications and we have to adopt new parts," he says.

Future versions will provide up to 25 watts to 30 watts of power, he says.

Products on Hold

As there are no fundamental issues with the technology's power production, Toshiba will this year start testing evaluation models of the prototype. At the same time it is working on getting undisclosed vendors to make smaller pumps, valves, and other parts, Arimura says.

As the company works through these issues, it does not believe a market will develop for DMFCs until regulations are approved to allow airplane passengers to carry fuel-cell cartridges, says Midori Suzuki, a spokesperson for the company.

This should be possible in 2007 following a December decision by a United Nations committee to fast-track such regulations.

This issue is one factor that has already caused NEC to delay commercialization of its DMFC until that year.

Meanwhile, a Taipei-based company claims it has three types of DMFCs ready for the market and is already talking to a number of PC vendors about commercialization.

Antig Technology, which was displaying its DMCF models at CeBIT, has developed what it claims is the world's first CD-sized fuel cell that can slot into the optical drive space of a notebook PC, according to Cary Chen, deputy account manager of the company's sales and marketing division.

Also on display was a DMFC-based battery charger that can recharge the battery for an ordinary 3G (third-generation) mobile phone in about an hour, Chen says. The mobile phone battery recharger produces 3 watts.

Because fuel-cell cartridge production, refueling technology, and sales channels have yet to be developed, it will probably take until around 2007 before the company's fuel cells become widely commercially available, Chen says.

To see PC World's complete CeBIT coverage, check out our CeBIT 2005 news page.