Andrea Rossi's cold fusion technology, called the E-Cat, has been developing rapidly over the past year. Currently, it is asserted that an extended test of a high- temperature module is taking place. What could the next evolutionary adaptation be for the Energy Catalyzer?

By Hank Mills
Pure Energy Systems News

The development of a low cost, safe, abundant, and robust source of energy is the goal of many researchers working on exotic technologies. Such a source of energy -- if used appropriately -- could allow humanity to survive the severe challenges facing our civilization. Although it is not known to everyone, such a game changing technology already exists and has been evolving rapidly over the past year. 

Those individuals who frequently visit PESN already know that the name of this revolutionary new technology is the E-Cat or "Energy Catalyzer." It is a "cold fusion" or LENR (Low Energy Nuclear Reaction) technology that emerged on the scene in January of 2011, and was invented by Andrea Rossi. Since that time, Andrea Rossi has made significant progress developing the technology, and getting it ready for commercial applications.

For those who do not know, an E-Cat works by specially processed and enriched (in isotopes Ni-62 and Ni-64) nickel powder being placed in a small steel reactor core. In addition to the nickel powder, certain catalysts are placed in the core, along with a small pellet that releases and absorbs hydrogen gas. An electric resistor heats the reactor core which induces hydrogen to be released from the pellet. A radio frequency generator is then used to apply frequencies to the contents of the core. The result is a number of different, but safe nuclear reactions taking place that release huge amounts of energy in the form of heat. No nuclear waste is produced, no radiation escapes the core, but the heat produced can be harnessed to do work.

In 2011, when Andrea Rossi first introduced the E-Cat, the reactor was only capable of staying "stable" at fairly low temperatures. At high temperatures the nuclear reactions were more difficult to control, and there could be a risk of a run away effect that had the potential to make the reactor core "go dead" by melting the nickel powder. If that happened, the reactor core would have to be re-fueled, and the old fuel recycled or disposed of. Due to this possibility, most of the E-Cat tests in 2011 utilized low temperatures. When steam was produced in one of the many tests performed in 2011, it was usually kept at a low temperature of perhaps a little over 100C.

However, Andrea Rossi has recently stated that an on-going test of a new high temperature E-Cat module is taking place. According to him, this new E-Cat module can produce a steady output of 600C steam. In fact, it is asserted that the module being tested has been producing 600C steam for over forty days! When the test is complete, data from it will be posted on Rossi's blog, The Journal of Nuclear Physics.

Reaching a temperature of 600C is important, because it means that the E-Cat can now produce steam that can be used to power modern turbines, such as those used in ordinary fossil fuel burning power plants. It should be noted that the vast majority of the electricity produced around the world is generated by the utilization of steam at temperatures at or below 600C. Basically, if the extended test of the high temperature E-Cat is successful -- Andrea Rossi has indicated it has been successful so far -- it means that cold fusion technology is now ready to power our world. 

Another interesting bit of information about the new E-Cat is that it utilizes even less nickel powder than previous designs. Instead of 50 grams of nickel (like some previous modules utilized) this new module consists of one reactor core that utilizes 1.5 (one point five) grams of nickel. This tiny amount of nickel is claimed to be enough to fuel an E-Cat for six months or longer. Over that six months, the module would be capable of producing a rated output of 10 kilowatts of constant heat in the form of 600C steam. In torture tests, the same unit can safely produce 20 kilowatts of output. 

Finally, the physical size of the reactor core is said to be smaller than previous designs. This is phenomenal, because some previous E-Cat units had reactor cores of only 50 cubic centimeters, or about the size of a D Cell battery. Those reactors had a rated output of 2.5 kilowatts, which is only one fourth the rated output of the new reactor!

The specifications of the latest E-Cat module make it clear this technology is rapidly evolving. According to Andrea Rossi, he is being assisted by the engineer that has been contracted by his military customer. Although this has not been stated plainly, it seems as if the military customer's representative(s) are either involved in this test, or at least observing it carefully. If the test turns out to be successful, it is obviously a technology any military (unless they had something even better in a black budget project somewhere) would want to have access to. 

Of course, there are low temperature home units and low temperature one megawatt plants being worked on, but these high temperature E-Cats are what really excite me. I find myself extremely eager to see the data from the extended multi-month long test. Once the test data confirms the claims that have been made, there will be no possible way to overstate the significance of these high temperature E-Cat units. Simply put, they are the holy grail of what cold fusion researchers and the entire exotic energy community has been dreaming of for decades. 

Consider the benefits this technology has to offer...

• Low-cost Fuel - Nickel, hydrogen, and cheap catalysts.
• High Power Density - Ten kilowatts of thermal power from a reactor core perhaps only 50CC or less in volume.
• High Temperature Output - Six hundred degree Celsius steam which allows for compatibility with state of the art, high efficiency turbines to generate electricity. Also, at this temperature it could be possible to use the steam to produce electricity via Stirling Engines or photothermalvoltaic panels.
• Safe Operation - No nuclear disaster is possible with this technology because no radioactive fuel is used, no nuclear waste is produced, and no radiation escapes the module.
• Portability and Continuous Operation - Unlike many other technologies, the E-Cat can be made small enough to be portable (even used to power vehicles) and can operate 24 hours a day regardless of weather conditions. 
• No Pollution - The E-Cat technology does not emit green house gases, particulate matter, or other pollution into the atmosphere.

The benefits of the E-Cat technology as it is right now -- producing 600C steam -- are already staggering to think about. However, this technology is still in an early stage of development. Once it hits the marketplace, it will start evolving at an even more rapid rate. 

If you look around online, there are already discussions about cold fusion based batteries, and solid state devices. I think it is very likely that ten years from now, someone could go to the store and pick out a small E-Cat branded battery that would last for years, output hundreds or thousands of watts, and could be used to provide constant power for their home.

Of course, this is conjecture about the future, but the reality of our current situation is that humanity has discovered a way to produce cheap 600C steam in a safe manner. This is something to get excited about. It means that depending on how fast the technology is commercialized and adopted, the fossil fuel age could be coming to an end in the not too distant future. 

With this technology, it could be possible to cheaply desalinate water to turn deserts into farmland, power indoor farms that utilize artificial lighting to grow food rapidly, lower everyone's power bill, make transportation much more affordable, and totally change the geo-political situation on this planet. With the E-Cat technology, we could all work together to make this world a better place, and even be capable of surviving black swan events -- like solar flares and asteroid impacts. 

We should all thank Andrea Rossi for all of his hard work developing this technology, and his willingness to communicate with the public. Unlike certain other companies, he regularly answers questions and is willing to post test data. I think we should all keep a close eye on his blog over the next few weeks, and stay tuned to PESN for the latest updates.


Postscript

The first products utilizing the new high temperature E-Cat modules will be most likely be large plants capable of producing an output one megawatt -- or possibly more -- in the form of heat, or around two hundred kilowatts of electrical power. This figure of two hundred kilowatts of electricity is net power, and is what would remain after the power to operate the unit has been subtracted. The greater the efficiency of the turbine generator, the larger the net electrical output would be. 

These first high capacity products will probably be intended for medium to large businesses, or industrial plants that would have engineering staff present to operate the unit. We can assume a one megawatt (or 200 kWe) plant would fit in one standard container about twenty feet long and eight feet wide. The turbine and generator would most likely fit into another standard container. Most likely, there will be some room set apart in one of the containers for a control panel and the display of pressure, temperature, and other sensor readings. There may also be some type of external mechanism to utilize any low grade waste heat that is remaining after the conversion of the high temperature steam to electricity, but this is speculation. Of course, there would be a system in place to both deliver the electricity produced to the customer's electrical infrastructure, and to divert a portion of the output to maintain the operation of the device. 

Andrea Rossi has stated that one of his goals is to make a high-capacity electrical generating E-Cat plant capable of fitting into two standard containers. These containers could then be shipped by cargo ship, plane, truck, or train to customers.


P.P.S.

# # #

This story is also published at Examiner.

What You Can Do

1. Pass this on to your friends and favorite news sources.
2. Click to Tweet: http://clicktotweet.com/2pPZl
3. Subscribe to our E-Cat newsletter.
4. Let professionals in the renewable energy sector know about the promise of this technology. 
5. Subscribe to our general newsletter to stay abreast of the latest, greatest developments in the free energy sector.
6. Help us manage the PESWiki feature page on Rossi's technology.

PESN Coverage of E-Cat

For a more exhaustive listing, see http://PESWiki.com/index.php/News:Rossi_Cold_Fusion | Mainstream

• LENR-to-Market Weekly -- June 21, 2012 (PESN)
• 600 Celsius - The Accelerating Evolution of Andrea Rossi's E-Cat (PESN; June 15, 2012)
• LENR-to-Market Weekly -- June 14, 2012 (PESN)
• LENR-to-Market Weekly -- May 31, 2012 (PESN)
• LENR-to-Market Weekly -- May 24, 2012 (PESN)
• LENR-to-Market Weekly -- May 17, 2012 (PESN)
• LENR-to-Market Weekly -- May 10, 2012 (PESN)
• LENR-to-Market Weekly -- May 3, 2012 (PESN)
• LENR-to-Market Weekly -- April 27, 2012 (PESN)
• Brillouin: "Understanding How LENR Works Will Enable Us to Be First" (PESN; April 19, 2012)
• LENR-to-Market Weekly -- April 19, 2012 (PESN)
• LENR-to-Market Weekly -- April 12, 2012 (PESN)
• E-Cat Weekly -- April 5, 2012 (PESN)
• E-Cat / Defkalion Weekly -- March 29, 2012 (PESN)
• E-Cat Weekly -- March 22, 2012 (PESN)
• E-Cat Weekly -- March 15, 2012 (PESN)
• Rossi Tells Florida Bureau He Has No U.S. Factory, No Nuclear Reactions (PESN; March 11, 2012)
• E-Cat Weekly -- March 8, 2012 (PESN)
• E-Cat / Defkalion Weekly -- March 1, 2012 (PESN)

MORE...

• Index is continued on Page 1, covering January 14, 2011 through September 21, 2011

Source: PESN