Synopses & Reviews
It sounds so simple. Just combine oxygen and hydrogen in an electrochemical reaction that produces water and electricity, and youandrsquo;ll have a clean, efficient power source. But scientists have spent decadesandmdash;and billions of dollars in government and industry fundingandmdash;developing the fuel cell. There have been successes and serendipitous discoveries along the way, but engineering a fuel cell that is both durable and affordable has proved extraordinarily difficult.
Overpotential charts the twists and turns in the ongoing quest to create the perfect fuel cell. By exploring the gap between the theory and practice of fuel cell power, Matthew N. Eisler opens a window into broader issues in the history of science, technology, and society after the Second World War, including the sociology of laboratory life, the relationship between academe, industry, and government in developing advanced technologies, the role of technology in environmental and pollution politics, and the rise of utopian discourse in science and engineering.
Review
andquot;Eislerandrsquo;s book is more than a succinct history of the fuel cell itself. Just as important, it traces the history of the often utopian ideas behind this technology. This well-written and carefully researched study...helps the reader understand why the fuel cell has yet to fulfill its glittering promise.
Overpotential provides a useful review of one technology whose various futures so far have failed to arrive.andquot;
Review
andquot;A very fine book. Overpotential unpacks the more complex, and infinitely more interesting, story of the intertwining of technological developments concerning electrical power and the search for new sources of cheap, safe, efficient electricity.andquot;
Review
andquot;In this extensively researched and detailed book, Eisler provides the 'rest of the story' of fuel cells and fuel cell applications progress in the 20th century. Highly recommended.andquot;
Review
and#160;andquot;Joining scholarly analysis with engaging narrative, Eisler exposes the perils of technology policy and reveals how a cult of innovation can trump socially sound energy policy in the United States.andquot;
Review
andquot;Eisler's historical treatment of the engineering subject matter in Overpotential provides a perspective that is often lacking in the current discourse on fuel cells.andquot;
Review
and#160;andquot;Exaggerated claims made on behalf of new energy conversions are commonly met with uncritical acceptance. Eisler provides a much needed corrective, a well-informed and critical explanation of why fuel cells have not become a miraculous energy source.andquot;
Synopsis
In the late 1890s, at the dawn of the automobile era, steam, gasoline, and electric cars all competed to become the dominant automotive technology. By the early 1900s, the battle was over and internal combustion had won. Was the electric car ever a viable competitor? What characteristics of late nineteenth-century American society led to the choice of internal combustion over its steam and electric competitors? And might not other factors, under slightly differing initial conditions, have led to the adoption of one of the other motive powers as the technological standard for the American automobile?
David A. Kirsch examines the relationship of technology, society, and environment to choice, policy, and outcome in the history of American transportation. He takes the history of the Electric Vehicle Company as a starting point for a vision of an "alternative" automotive system in which gasoline and electric vehicles would have each been used to supply different kinds of transport services. Kirsch examines both the support--and lack thereof--for electric vehicles by the electric utility industry. Turning to the history of the electric truck, he explores the demise of the idea that different forms of transportation technology might coexist, each in its own distinct sphere of service.
A main argument throughout Kirsch's book is that technological superiority cannot be determined devoid of social context. In the case of the automobile, technological superiority ultimately was located in the hearts and minds of engineers, consumers and drivers; it was not programmed inexorably into the chemical bonds of a gallon of refined petroleum. Finally, Kirsch connects the historic choice of internal combustion over electricity to current debates about the social and environmental impacts of the automobile, the introduction of new hybrid vehicles, and the continuing evolution of the American transportation system.
Description
Includes bibliographical references (p. 275-282) and index.
About the Author
MATTHEW N. EISLER is a historian of science and technology, and is a lecturer at the University of Virgina. His research focuses on the political economy, culture, and discourse of science-based innovation, particularly in the energy and transportation sectors.
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments
Introduction: Fuel Cell Futurism
1 Device in Search of a Role
2 Military Miracle Battery
3 Fuel Cells and the Final Frontier
4 Dawn of the Commercial Fuel Cell
5 Fueling Hydrogen Futurism
6 Green Automobile Wars
7 Electrochemical Millennium
Conclusion
Notes
Index