Strictly speaking in the wrong forum as its not hydrogen fuel cell.. but this is quite interesting and could sidestep many hydrogen related headaches

The only issue I can see for ethanol fuel cells is that the ethanol usually comes from plants and I'm not sure if we could use land that could be for food production for fuel production instead. We'd have to balance out the technologies so we don't overburden one production method over another.

 

Land use is a concern but more than that, water is a problem in much of the world. Here in the USA, California, Nevada, New Mexico, Montana, and many other western states are facing a water crisis right now. Ethanol production using corn and hydraulic fracking to produce oil may not be possible much longer were fresh water is in short supply. In South America alcohol production is much more practical due to a climate that supports sugar cain and there is normally ample rain fall. There are alternative crops that can produce more alcohol than corn. Sugar beets, cattails and certain grasses may grow in places were food crops will not and with very little care. The best fuel is the stuff we fear will warm the Earth; methane. Methane is produced naturally by every animal on the planet. Sewage systems and landfills produce a lot of gas. The cattle industry fills huge open cesspools with raw animal waste that is nothing but biologically hazardous pollution that breeds many strains of super bacteria. It could be the stuff that fuels a nation. As an example, in India, much cooking is done on small gas burners that are fueled by methane from a vat of manure warmed by the Sun. A fuel cell can be fueled by many things, even the exhaust pipe of your hybrid car can power a fuel cell if you take the catalytic converter off.

 

It seems to aimed at Brazil where they already grow their own fuel and many cars run on an ethanol based mixe instead of petrol and have been doing since the 70s. So long as it's more efficient than combustion it shouldn't have much of a detrimental effect in that regard.

 

a bit more detail on it here in the official press release Main Media - United Kingdom - Nissan Newsroom

 

The only issue I can see for ethanol fuel cells is that the ethanol usually comes from plants and I'm not sure if we could use land that could be for food production for fuel production instead. We'd have to balance out the technologies so we don't overburden one production method over another.

Well if we don't need oil tankers there must be a few thousand acres floating around waiting to be planted on?

 

Also by extension of that thinking would that not mean we would have a nice extra bit of oxygen and reduced co2? Plants tend to do that, don't they?