Plug Power Inc (PLUG)

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Problem with formic acid is that it's very corrosive. It has a pka of 3.75 which is significantly stronger than acetic acid (pka 4.74). It has a very pungent smell and chronic exposure to humans causes kidney damage and to the optic nerves. Low molecular weight carboxylic acids (the class of cmpds it falls in) are typically strong in odor. E.g., acetic acid, butyric acid (aka liquid vomit) and 5-C variants are your typical agents of locker room smell. Hydrogen, H2, is very stable at RT and does not smell. It is nonpolar and easy to store. Hydrogen is the most abundant element in the universe. It is green friendly, and the formation via, 2 H2O --> 2 H2 + O2 can be powered using solar energy. Hydrogen sources trump formic acid sources by a mile (and then some). If you look at electrochemical energy released per carbon content from methane to methanol to formic acid, formic acid gives off the least amount. Oxidation of hydrogen surpasses all of these AND no CO2 is given off! You keep mentioning that hydrogen gas is very explosive -- and you are correct -- but you can have it both ways. Because it is so exergonic it's a better source of energy. Formic acid fuel cells are less efficient then hydrogen fuel cells.

Beller points out that using formic acid to make hydrogen also has drawbacks. Compared with methane and methanol, formic acid has much less hydrogen. If you use all the hydrogen in a kilogram of methanol, you get 4.19 kilowatt-hours of energy, while the hydrogen in a kilogram of formic acid gives 1.45 kilowatt-hours.
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But in the short term, Beller says, the researchers consider formic acid a fuel source for portable electronics. “We don’t aim currently for large use in cars–this does not make sense.”

Source: MIT Technology review, http://www.technologyreview.com/news/410135/hydrogen-fuel-from-formic-acid/

For plug it's all about power that can be delivered to the forklift!

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