Alternative Fuel Quick Links:
- BioDiesel
- Ethanol
- Natural Gas
- Solar Power
- Wind Power
- Hydrogen
- Hydroelectric Power
- Liquid Coal
- Hybrid Vehicles
- Electric Cars
- Air Cars

Portable Hydrogen Generator Comparison

Model:	Trulite KH4	EFOY 1200	HydroPak
Continuous Power	150 W	50 W	25 W
Peak Power	250 W		50 W
Output voltage	5, 11-14 VDC 120 VAC	12 VDC	5 VDC, 110 AC
Weight	23 lbs	17 lbs	3.5 lbs
Size	8.5”x13.7”x16.2”	7.8”x10.8”x17.2”	8.6”x8.2”x3.9”
Operating Temp Range	34 to 104 deg F	-4 to 104 deg F	33 to 104 deg F
Noise maximum	<60 dB @ 3ft	39 dB @ 3ft
Fuel Cartridges Type	Sodium borohydride	Methanol
Water Activated	YES	NO	YES
Back up Batteries	NO	YES	NO
Availability	December 2008	Now	December 2008
Retail Price	$3000	$3345	$400 (projected)
Literature Download	PDF	PDF	PDF

Additional Notes:
The Horizon Fuel Cell Technologies 50W Hydropak with $30 for each 270Wh per cartridge does not compete in the same market space as the 150W Trulite KH4 unit (peak 250Ws for 15 minutes) with 400 Wh canisters at $30.00 each. At 50 watts they can power or recharge a single 40W laptop computer or a single mobile radio (30Ws). The 50W EFOY 1200 SFC Smart Fuel Cell AG is closer to competition to the Trulite KH4.

Both the Hydropak and EFOY systems are competing against carrying additional battery packs (prices from $100 - $600). For an individual, carrying one spare battery vs. a fuel cell is a hard sell. Multiple people instead of carrying multiple spare batteries simply switch out their batteries at the battery charging station.

Trulite is targeting the 6 – 8 multibay battery charger market. Most mobile radios have 20 – 30 W batteries. This means they draw from 120W – 240 Ws at peak and decline as the battery gets charged.

The Iridium Satellite Phone (35 Ws) for example has 3.2 hours of talk time with a high capacity battery but with its Data Capability to transmit data via an optional RS232 adapter the power draw jumps to 50 Ws decreasing the battery life to approx. 2 hours. Assuming the Satellite Phone user also has a computer (draws 40Ws) and the phone & computer are both in the field (away from a wall plug) then the user actually needs 90 – 100W’s of total power if they want to have extended talk and transmission capability. This makes the Trulite KH4 portable hydrogen generator the only option for satellite phone users and first responder mobile radio customers needing the additional power requirements.

Back to the Hydrogen Index