Economical alternative

Monash University scientists have developed a new type of fuel cell in which a specially coated form of a popular high-tech outdoor and sporting clothing material is the key component.

The team of Monash scientists have designed and tested an air-electrode, where a fine layer - just 0.4 of a micron thick - of highly conductive plastic is deposited on breathable Goretex fabric. The conductive plastic acts as both a fuel cell electrode and catalyst.

Monash University's Dr Bjorn Winther-Jensen said just as Goretex had revolutionised the outdoor clothing industry, it could hold similar promise for motorists.

He said: 'The same way as waste vapour is drawn out of this material to make hikers more comfortable and less prone to hypothermia, so it is able to 'breathe' oxygen into our fuel cell and into contact with the conductive plastic.'

Monash University's Prof Doug MacFarlane from the Australian Centre for Electromaterials Science (ACES) said the discovery was probably the most important development in fuel cell technology in the last 20 years.