What is a Bloom Box®?
A Bloom Box® is a refrigerator-sized domestic power plant that produces electricity cleanly and cheaply, and may one day replace the traditional power grid. Its inventor wants to put one in every home by the year 2020.
What is a Bloom Energy Server?
Based on our proprietary solid oxide fuel cell technology, Bloom Energy Servers convert fuel into electricity through an electrochemical process without combustion at the highest efficiency of any power solution available in the world today.
How much electricity does a Bloom Box generate?
Powered up: This Bloom installation at La Jolla Commons in San Diego, California, generates about 5 million kilowatt-hours of electricity per year. B y 2008, Sridhar had installed Bloom’s first boxes at Google, where Doerr is a longtime board member.
Is Bloom Energy's Tech cleaner than the average power plant?
Friends in green places: Bloom Energy's Sridhar gives an early factory tour to then Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and Mike Bloomberg in 2006. A t least Bloom’s tech is cleaner than the average power plant, though, right?
What is in the Bloom Box?
A Bloom Box, officially known as an Bloom Energy Server, is a modular stack of solid oxide fuel cells that can produce electricity. A solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) is a high-temperature fuel cell that produces electricity from a chemical reaction.
What is a Bloom Box How does it work?
So what is Bloom Box? It's a collection of fuel cells – skinny batteries – that use oxygen and fuel to create electricity with no emissions. Fuel cells are the building blocks of the Bloom Box. They're made of sand that is baked into diskette-sized ceramic squares and painted with green and black ink.
How much does a Bloom Box cost?
Sources: Bloom Box Costs $12.50 Per Watt.
How does Bloom Box energy Work?
Operating at high temperatures inside the Energy Server ('Bloom Box'), ambient air enters the cathode side of the fuel cell. Meanwhile, steam mixes with fuel (natural gas or biogas) entering from the anode side to produce reformed fuel. As the reformed fuel crosses the anode, it attracts oxygen ions from the cathode.
Does Bloom Energy have a future?
For the full year, revenue was $972.2 million, growing 22.4% compared to 2020. Overall, Bloom Energy's performance so far has been impressive. In 2022, Bloom Energy expects to grow its revenue by around 16%. It also expects to generate positive cash flows from operations for the full year.
What fuel does bloom energy use?
Hydrogen Fuel CellsHydrogen Fuel Cells We're leveraging our proven fuel cell technology to generate carbon-free electricity from hydrogen.
What size Bloom Box would you need to generate electricity in a house?
A stack of 64, which is around the size of a house brick, can generate enough power to run a small business.
Is Bloom Energy profitable?
Bloom Energy is bordering on breakeven, according to the 16 American Electrical analysts. They anticipate the company to incur a final loss in 2023, before generating positive profits of US$61m in 2024. Therefore, the company is expected to breakeven roughly 2 years from today.
Is Bloom Energy for real?
Bloom Energy is a public company headquartered in San Jose, California. It manufactures and markets solid oxide fuel cells that produce electricity on-site. The company was founded in 2001 and came out of stealth mode in 2010. It raised more than $1 billion in venture capital funding before going public in 2018.
Is Bloom Energy stock a good buy?
The company has a Moderate Buy consensus rating based on five Buys, five Holds, and zero Sell ratings. The average Bloom Energy stock forecast is $26.90, implying 18% upside potential.
Who are Bloom Energy competitors?
Bloom Energy competitors include Plug Power, GE Digital and NorthWestern Energy.
How long do solid oxide fuel cells last?
40,000–80,000 hAmong the different fuel cells, the SOFC is one of the most efficient technologies for power generation as it is flexible to fuel choice, noiseless, showing low CO2 emissions, and has a potentially long lifetime of 40,000–80,000 h [8].
How does a solid oxide fuel cell work?
A solid oxide fuel cell utilizes the movement of electrons and generates electricity in few basic steps. Natural gas goes through a steam-reforming process. This chemical reaction produces hydrogen (H2), carbon monoxide (CO), carbon dioxide (CO2) and steam (H2O).
How does a fuel cell works?
A fuel, such as hydrogen, is fed to the anode, and air is fed to the cathode. In a hydrogen fuel cell, a catalyst at the anode separates hydrogen molecules into protons and electrons, which take different paths to the cathode. The electrons go through an external circuit, creating a flow of electricity.
What Does Bloom Box Mean?
Bloom Box is a type of device that consists of modular solid oxide fuel cells capable of producing and delivering electricity.
Techopedia Explains Bloom Box
Bloom Box produces electricity using renewable and energy-efficient fuel sources. It was designed to be used as a portable, cost-effective and eco-friendly mode of producing and delivering electricity. A single Bloom Box can produce up to 200kW of power.
Where is the Bloom Box?
A 1-megawatt Bloom Box fuel cell system installed at Yahoo headquarters in Sunnyvale, California in 2014 is designed to "power one-third of the electricity to the buildings on Yahoo’s campus.". Stop & Shop Supermarket Company announced a 250 kW system in 2015, and 2020 announced plans to configure 40 MA and NY stores to "microgrids" using Bloom ...
What is a Bloom Energy Server?
The Bloom Energy Server or Bloom Box is a solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) power generator made by Bloom Energy, of Sunnyvale, California, that takes a variety of input fuels, including liquid or gaseous hydrocarbons produced from biological sources, to produce electricity at or near the site where it will be used. It withstands temperatures of up to 1,800 °F (980 °C). According to the company, a single cell (one 100 mm × 100 mm plate consisting of three ceramic layers) generates 25 watts.
What temperature does a Bloom Box need to be?
A competitor claimed the Bloom Box uses a "thick electrolyte" that requires 900 °C temperatures to overcome electrical resistance. Topsoe Fuel Cell and Ceres Power instead employ "thick anode" technology that allows operation at cooler temperature. Ceres has a four-year program to install 37,500 units in the homes of customers of the UK's British Gas.
How long do Bloom Energy Servers last?
Sridhar said the boxes have a 10-year life span, although that could include replacing the cells during that period. The CEO of eBay says Bloom Energy Servers have saved the company $100,000 in electricity bills since they were installed in mid-2009, Fortune Magazine contributor Paul Keegan calls that figure "meaningless without the details to see how he got there".
How efficient is Bloom Energy Server?
An expert at Gerson Lehrman Group wrote that, given today's electricity transmission losses of about 7% and utility-size gas-fired power stations efficiency of 33–48%, the Bloom Energy Server is up to twice as efficient as a gas-fired power station.
How much money did Bloom Energy get in 2009?
In October 2012, the US government awarded Bloom Energy $70,710,959 under its section 1603 energy awards program.
What conductor plate is used in Bloom Energy Server?
To save money, the Bloom Energy Server uses inexpensive metal alloy plates for electric conductance between the two ceramic fast ion conductor plates. In competing lower temperature fuel cells, platinum is required at the cathode.
How much energy does Bloom generate?
Bloom’s device generates electricity at 50% to 55% conversion efficiency . In comparison, solar generally produces power at between 10% to 15% efficiency.
Does Bloom Energy Server produce CO2?
But unlike solar panels, the Bloom Energy Server produces CO2 as a byproduct. According to the Energy Collective, “CO2 emissions when running on natural gas would be just under 0.8 pounds/kWh, national average for on-grid electricity (around 1.3-1.5 lbs/kWh).”.
How does a bloom box work?
How Bloom Box Should Work, Basically. At the heart of the Bloom Box will be solid oxide fuel cells —in this case, flat, coaster-size ceramic plates with a secret coating—widely considered by experts to be one of the most efficient types of fuel cells.
What could be automatically run through the Bloom Box?
That new fuel and oxidant could be automatically run through the Bloom Box to generate even more electricity—and less waste.
How many homes can a Bloom Box power?
One of these jumbo Bloom Boxes, called Bloom Box Servers, could power a hundred homes, and four of them could power a 35,000-square-foot (3,250-square-meter) office building, Sridhar said on CBS. Sridhar, a former NASA engineer, said he hopes to begin selling the mini-fridge-size Bloom Boxes within five to ten years.
What would happen if oxygen and natural gas were fed into the Bloom Box?
Oxygen and natural gas would be fed into the Bloom Box and undergo a high-temperature chemical reaction in the fuel cells to produce electricity, heat, carbon dioxide, and water.
How long will the Bloom Box last?
households within ten years, according to Bloom Energy. Or not.
Is the Bloom Box revolutionary?
Based on the 60 Minutes segment, Prinz said, the design of the Bloom Box appears to be fairly standard and that there was nothing obviously revolutionary about it. "They didn't reveal any new physics or any new principles, but I don't think they need to do that," Prinz added.
Is Bloom Box a good alternative to solar?
In an interview with CBS TV's 60 Minutes Sunday night—which did much to fuel anticipation for today's announcement—K.R. Sridhar, CEO of Bloom Energy, said that, for one thing, the Bloom Box fuel cell system is a much better, or at least more reliable, alternative to solar power as a green energy source.
All of our plants are sourced and grown with care by the best local, family-owned greenhouses
Limited to a very select few, we choose our greenhouse partners based on their skill in growing highest quality plants available. Almost all of our perennial crops are planted the previous year and allowed to overwinter to fill out the pots, strengthening their roots and ensuring their success in your flower beds.
Our team hand-selects every plant
We know it’s hard to imagine not eyeing up and selecting each plant that you purchase, but rest assured that our team is carefully selecting the healthiest, fullest plants for purchase. Each plant on our site includes a picture of a staff member holding it, so you can see exactly what it looks like when you'll receive it.
We then carefully pack your plants in open-top boxes hand delivered to your door
Packed by BloomBox. Delivered by BloomBox. We promise we will never cram your delicate cargo in a stuffy box. Your purchases will stay out in the open air where plants belong. You’ll receive a message the day we’re out for delivery and when to expect us. You don’t have to be home when we stop by, but if you are, we love to say, “Hi!”
What is the Bloom Box?
In a TV interview with Leslie Stahl on 60 Minutes in 2010, they touted Bloom boxes as the future of clean, green power generation. “The Bloom box is intended to replace the grid—it’s cheaper than the grid, it’s cleaner than the grid,” Doerr told Stahl.
How long does a Bloom box last?
Bloom is a long way from being able to offer such pricing, though the technology is getting better. Whereas its earliest boxes lasted less than two years before they needed to be replaced, today Bloom claims it has gotten the life span up to nearly five years. What would be more impressive: if it could make money. So far the firm has chalked up more than $2.7 billion (and counting) in cumulative losses. In the nine months through September 2019, Bloom posted a net loss of $195 million on $668 million in sales.
How much did Bloom lose in 2019?
In the nine months through September 2019, Bloom posted a net loss of $195 million on $668 million in sales. On July 25, 2018, the day of Bloom’s IPO, Sridhar falsely told MarketWatch reporters that the company was profitable as of the second quarter.
What was the Bloom Energy project?
According to Bloom, the project was intended to meet a series of economic development and energy policy goals, and was expected to cost more than wholesale. Friends in green places: Bloom Energy's Sridhar gives an early factory tour to then Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and Mike Bloomberg in 2006.
Where were Bloom boxes installed?
B y 2008, Sridhar had installed Bloom’s first boxes at Google, where Doerr is a longtime board member. There were problems from the start. Those initial machines were hand-assembled, Sridhar recalls, in a hobby shop at Moffett Federal Airfield in Santa Clara County, rather than on today’s automated assembly line. A former Bloom executive claims that those early boxes had to be monitored 24/7, and that internal modules stacked with hundreds of 4-by-4-inch fuel cell wafers needed to be swapped out a couple times a year, at $225,000 a pop. Another complication of these Rube Goldberg devices was the filtration systems—metal canisters filled with pebbles of solid catalysts that separate sulfur compounds and other contaminants from the methane gas. According to the same executive, the first time technicians went to empty the canisters, they simply sucked out the used catalyst with a Shop-Vac and ended up spreading a rotten-egg smell across the neighborhood. Bloom called the executive’s account “hearsay.”
How does Bloom get its fuel?
Even better, Bloom’s units get their fuel via underground pipelines unaffected by the Diablo winds that threatened California’s high-voltage wires and led to the power outages that Sridhar considers intolerable in any modern society, let alone in Silicon Valley.
How much money did Bloom make?
Bloom has never generated a profit, despite at least $1.7 billion of invested capital, some of which was raised on the back of false statements.
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Overview
The Bloom Energy Server or Bloom Box is a solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) power generator made by Bloom Energy, of Sunnyvale, California, that takes a variety of input fuels, including liquid or gaseous hydrocarbons produced from biological sources, to produce electricity at or near the site where it will be used. It withstands temperatures of up to 1,800 °F (980 °C). According to the company, a single cell (one 100 mm × 100 mm plate consisting of three ceramic layers) generat…
Technology
The Bloom Energy Server uses thin white ceramic plates of size 100 × 100 mm. Each plate is coated with a green nickel oxide-based ink on one side, forming the anode, and another black (probably Lanthanum strontium manganite) ink on the cathode side. Wired reported that the secret ingredient may be yttria-stabilized zirconia based upon US patent 7572530 that was granted to Bloom in 2009; this material is also one of the most common electrolyte materials in the field. US …
Costs
The current cost of each hand-made 100 kW Bloom Energy Server is $700,000–800,000. In 2010, the company announced plans for a smaller, home sized Bloom server priced under $3,000. Bloom estimated the size of a home-sized server at 1 kW, although others recommended 5 kW. The capital cost is $7–8 per watt.
According to The New York Times (Green Blog), in early 2011 "... Bloom Energy ... unveiled a ser…
Installations
The company says that its first 100-kW Bloom Energy Servers were shipped to Google in July 2008. Four such servers were installed at Google's headquarters, which became Bloom Energy's first customer. Another installation of five boxes produces up to 500 kW at eBay headquarters California. Bloom Energy stated that their customers include Staples (300 kW – December 2008), Walmart (800 kW – January 2010), FedEx (500 kW), The Coca-Cola Company (500 kW) and Bank o…
Portable units
Sridhar announced plans to install Bloom Energy Servers in third world nations. Ex-Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Colin Powell, now a Bloom Energy board member, said the Bloom Energy generators could be useful to the military because they are lighter, more efficient, and generate less heat than traditional generators.
Feasibility
Bloom Energy Servers stack small fuel cells to operate in concert. Bloom Energy's approach of assembling fuel-cell stacks that enables individual plates to expand and contract at the same rate at high temperatures. However, other solid oxide fuel cell producers have solved the problem of different expansion rates of cells in the past. Scott Samuelsen of the University of California, Irvine National Fuel Cell Research Center questioned the operational life of Bloom Servers. "At this poi…
Competition
A Gerson Lehrman Group analyst wrote that GE dismantled its fuel cell group five years ago and Siemens almost dismantled theirs. GE Power Conversion is researching a SOFC power hybrid. United Technologies is the only large conglomerate that has competitive fuel cell technology. Toshiba has technology to provide energy for a small device, not a neighborhood.
Sprint owns 15 patents on hydrogen fuel cells and is using 250 fuel cells to provide backup powe…
See also
• Home fuel cell