- Email: [email protected]
ChevronTexaco fuel processor for Hydrogenics test facility
NEWS The GenCore5T is Plug Power’s first direct hydrogen product based on its proprietary, modular, scaleable GenCore fuel cell platform. The company says that future products from this platform, ranging from 2 to 12 kWe, will be marketed to the cable broadband and uninterruptible power supply (UPS) industries. The zero-emission GenCore5T is priced at $14 995 ($3000/kWe), and is expected to appeal to system operators concerned with reducing life-cycle maintenance and total equipment expenses. GenCore5T shipments are expected to begin during the fourth quarter of 2003, under a controlled introduction strategy driven by customer demand and the establishment of a distribution and support infrastructure. Plug Power currently has a 10-unit order backlog for the GenCore5T, and is working with technical and fuel service providers to support its rollout. The agreement with Michigan-based DTE Energy Technologies will see that company’s web-based, remote monitoring and control service energy|now SOC (System Operations Center™) offered as an optional feature on all Plug Power systems. Information can be accessed over the Internet around the clock, and archived for up to three years. The SOC also can be integrated with primary electric and gas meters, and provides peak demand notification to enable customers to better manage their energy costs. Contact: Plug Power Inc, Latham, New York, USA. Tel: +1 518 782 7700, www.plugpower.com Or contact: DTE Energy Technologies, Farmington Hills, Michigan, USA. Tel: +1 248 668 9530, www.dtetech.com
ChevronTexaco fuel processor for Hydrogenics test facility Toronto-based Hydrogenics, through its subsidiary Greenlight Power Technologies in British Columbia, has selected the Halias™ hydrocarbon fuel processor developed by ChevronTexaco Technology Ventures (CTTV) in Texas for use in Greenlight’s fuel cell testing facility in Vancouver. The Halias system will provide onsite hydrogen generation for the fuel cell testing and evaluation facility, which is part of the Fuel Cells Canada demonstration program. The Halias system converts natural gas or propane into hydrogen. It features a compact single-reactor design, integrated anode tail gas oxidizer and proprietary control systems architecture, which are intended to give greater integration and testing flexibility to fuel cell 8
Fuel Cells Bulletin
developers and testers. Halias is one of the first fuel processors being developed by CTTV, alongside a number of hydrogen generation solutions. In addition to working with PEM fuel cell developers and testers on early-stage integrated power systems, CTTV is also looking at the Halias platform to develop compact hydrogen generator refueling appliances for hydrogen refueling demonstrations. Contact: ChevronTexaco Technology Ventures, Bellaire, Texas, USA. Tel: +1 713 432 2188, www.chevrontexaco.com/technologyventures Or contact: Hydrogenics Corporation, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. Tel: +1 905 361 3600, www.hydrogenics.com Or contact: Greenlight Power Technologies, Burnaby, BC, Canada. Tel: +1 604 676 4000, www.greenlightpower.com
South Carolina gets NSF cooperative fuel cell research center In the US, the National Science Foundation has selected the College of Engineering & Information Technology at the University of South Carolina (USC) for the nation’s first Industry/University Cooperative Research Center (I/UCRC) for Fuel Cells. NSF funding for the center will total $210 000 over three years, supplementing $1.2m in industrial membership dues over the same period. ‘NSF expects the new Industry/University Cooperative Research Centers for Fuel Cells to be a vital contributor to meeting the goals of [President Bush’s hydrogen] initiative,’ said Alex Schwarzkopf, lead program director for the NSF’s I/UCRC. ‘USC is known for its modeling capability of fuel cells and for great research in this field.’ USC and its industrial partners will work to advance the technology and commercialization of fuel cells by performing research in five key areas – fuel cell design; fuel cell performance; hydrogen storage materials, devices and distribution systems; new catalysts for hydrogen production and for fuel cell electrodes; and motor design and power conditioning. The strength of the NSF’s I/UCRC program comes from the long-term partnerships developed among the university, its member industries and government – each conducting research relevant to the partners. USC has already signed 11 industrial partners, each contributing $35 000 – CD adapco, BASF,
Bulk Molding Compounds Inc, Dana Corporation, Eastman Chemical, Entegris, John Deere ePower Technologies, Plug Power, Westinghouse Savannah River Co, Showa Denko Carbon Sales Inc and W.L. Gore & Associates. USC graduate and undergraduate students also will have the opportunity to develop expertise in these areas, creating the next generation of fuel cell experts. Projects under way at USC include developing improved technologies for generating and storing hydrogen. One such project is examining ways to produce very pure hydrogen. The center also is looking at what happens when fuel cells are used in the real world rather than in controlled, laboratory conditions. ‘The center helps industry because it provides an avenue for leveraging risks in a cooperative environment to understand fuel cell behavior,’ said Dr John Van Zee, a USC professor of chemical engineering and director of the I/UCRC. ‘USC students and faculty will have the opportunity to work with industry leaders to learn about the opportunities in fuel cell technology. Industrial direction and participation, as well as cooperation by USC scientists, are essential elements.’ Contact: Professor John Van Zee, Director, NSF Industry/ University Cooperative Research Center for Fuel Cells, Department of Chemical Engineering, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina, USA. Tel: +1 803 777 2285, Email: [email protected], Web: fuelcells.engr.sc.edu
Avista fuel cell for FAA, progress on distribution Spokane, Washington-based Avista Labs has installed a 3 kWe PEM fuel cell system for the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The fuel cell will provide critical backup power for a radio transmitter receiver (RTR) site at McChord Air Force Base in Tacoma, Washington and is now undergoing a oneyear, intensive field test. The installation consists of six Avista Labs Independence 500™ fuel cells housed in an outdoor Avista-designed enclosure, which contains both the fuel cell system and hydrogen provided by Airgas. The installation will test the fuel cell’s response to a primary power outage and continuing to meet the needs of the load under various operating conditions. In addition to providing backup power, the fuel cell will be started three times daily in simulated outages to collect information on reliability and performance.
August 2003
ChevronTexaco fuel processor for Hydrogenics test facility Toronto-based Hydrogenics, through its subsidiary Greenlight Power Technologies in British Columbia, has selected the Halias™ hydrocarbon fuel processor developed by ChevronTexaco Technology Ventures (CTTV) in Texas for use in Greenlight’s fuel cell testing facility in Vancouver. The Halias system will provide onsite hydrogen generation for the fuel cell testing and evaluation facility, which is part of the Fuel Cells Canada demonstration program. The Halias system converts natural gas or propane into hydrogen. It features a compact single-reactor design, integrated anode tail gas oxidizer and proprietary control systems architecture, which are intended to give greater integration and testing flexibility to fuel cell 8
Fuel Cells Bulletin
developers and testers. Halias is one of the first fuel processors being developed by CTTV, alongside a number of hydrogen generation solutions. In addition to working with PEM fuel cell developers and testers on early-stage integrated power systems, CTTV is also looking at the Halias platform to develop compact hydrogen generator refueling appliances for hydrogen refueling demonstrations. Contact: ChevronTexaco Technology Ventures, Bellaire, Texas, USA. Tel: +1 713 432 2188, www.chevrontexaco.com/technologyventures Or contact: Hydrogenics Corporation, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. Tel: +1 905 361 3600, www.hydrogenics.com Or contact: Greenlight Power Technologies, Burnaby, BC, Canada. Tel: +1 604 676 4000, www.greenlightpower.com
South Carolina gets NSF cooperative fuel cell research center In the US, the National Science Foundation has selected the College of Engineering & Information Technology at the University of South Carolina (USC) for the nation’s first Industry/University Cooperative Research Center (I/UCRC) for Fuel Cells. NSF funding for the center will total $210 000 over three years, supplementing $1.2m in industrial membership dues over the same period. ‘NSF expects the new Industry/University Cooperative Research Centers for Fuel Cells to be a vital contributor to meeting the goals of [President Bush’s hydrogen] initiative,’ said Alex Schwarzkopf, lead program director for the NSF’s I/UCRC. ‘USC is known for its modeling capability of fuel cells and for great research in this field.’ USC and its industrial partners will work to advance the technology and commercialization of fuel cells by performing research in five key areas – fuel cell design; fuel cell performance; hydrogen storage materials, devices and distribution systems; new catalysts for hydrogen production and for fuel cell electrodes; and motor design and power conditioning. The strength of the NSF’s I/UCRC program comes from the long-term partnerships developed among the university, its member industries and government – each conducting research relevant to the partners. USC has already signed 11 industrial partners, each contributing $35 000 – CD adapco, BASF,
Bulk Molding Compounds Inc, Dana Corporation, Eastman Chemical, Entegris, John Deere ePower Technologies, Plug Power, Westinghouse Savannah River Co, Showa Denko Carbon Sales Inc and W.L. Gore & Associates. USC graduate and undergraduate students also will have the opportunity to develop expertise in these areas, creating the next generation of fuel cell experts. Projects under way at USC include developing improved technologies for generating and storing hydrogen. One such project is examining ways to produce very pure hydrogen. The center also is looking at what happens when fuel cells are used in the real world rather than in controlled, laboratory conditions. ‘The center helps industry because it provides an avenue for leveraging risks in a cooperative environment to understand fuel cell behavior,’ said Dr John Van Zee, a USC professor of chemical engineering and director of the I/UCRC. ‘USC students and faculty will have the opportunity to work with industry leaders to learn about the opportunities in fuel cell technology. Industrial direction and participation, as well as cooperation by USC scientists, are essential elements.’ Contact: Professor John Van Zee, Director, NSF Industry/ University Cooperative Research Center for Fuel Cells, Department of Chemical Engineering, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina, USA. Tel: +1 803 777 2285, Email: [email protected], Web: fuelcells.engr.sc.edu
Avista fuel cell for FAA, progress on distribution Spokane, Washington-based Avista Labs has installed a 3 kWe PEM fuel cell system for the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). The fuel cell will provide critical backup power for a radio transmitter receiver (RTR) site at McChord Air Force Base in Tacoma, Washington and is now undergoing a oneyear, intensive field test. The installation consists of six Avista Labs Independence 500™ fuel cells housed in an outdoor Avista-designed enclosure, which contains both the fuel cell system and hydrogen provided by Airgas. The installation will test the fuel cell’s response to a primary power outage and continuing to meet the needs of the load under various operating conditions. In addition to providing backup power, the fuel cell will be started three times daily in simulated outages to collect information on reliability and performance.
August 2003