- Email: [email protected]
CaFCP launches hydrogen fuel nozzle initiative
NEWS of parts and materials from the US in producing the prototypes, but hope to team up with other Japanese companies to cut costs through domestic procurement. The two companies also believe that increased local sourcing will enable them to improve product quality and respond more quickly to parts replacement orders. Among the parts expected to be procured domestically are ceramics for electrolysis membranes made by firms such as Tosoh and Sumitomo Metal Mining, as well as heatexchangers made by Sumitomo Precision Products, Toyo Radiator and others. Inverters and other electrical control systems are made by major electric machinery manufacturers, including Sanyo Electric. Contact: Acumentrics Corporation, Westwood, Massachusetts, USA. Tel: +1 781 461 8251, www.acumentrics.com Or contact: Nippon Steel Corporation, Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. Tel: +81 3 3242 4111, www.nsc.co.jp
HydrogenSource to be dissolved, as reforming falls from favor for FCVs
C
onnecticut-based fuel processing developer HydrogenSource is being closed down, following a decision by the joint venture’s owners, UTC Fuel Cells and Shell Hydrogen. The JV’s owners have recognized that over the past three years the evolving hydrogen industry has moved away from on-board fuel processors for hydrogen-fueled vehicles, even though HydrogenSource has made good progress in its fuel processing work. The market demand for the products in development has shifted in both direction and timing, as onboard fuel processing is replaced with on-board hydrogen storage. Recently HydrogenSource embarked on the development of two promising applications – fuel processors for diesel engine emission reduction, and distributed hydrogen generation. While the technologies look promising, market analysis shows the demand for these products is not likely to develop into a viable commercial business in the near future. The technologies contributed to HydrogenSource by UTC Fuel Cells and Shell Hydrogen will revert back to their respective owners, while technology developed by HydrogenSource will be jointly shared. HydrogenSource was formed in May 2001 by UTC Fuel Cells and Shell Hydrogen (US) to develop, manufacture and sell fuel processors 10
Fuel Cells Bulletin
and hydrogen generation systems for emerging fuel cell and hydrogen fuel applications. Initial efforts were focused primarily on reformers for stationary fuel cells and on-board fuel processors for hydrogen-fueled vehicles. Contact: UTC Fuel Cells, South Windsor, Connecticut, USA. Tel: +1 866 383 5235, www.utcfuelcells.com Or contact: Shell Hydrogen, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Tel: +31 20 630 9111, www.shell.com/hydrogen
Voller upgrades portable fuel cell generator
U
K-based fuel cell integrator Voller Energy launched an updated version of its portable PEM fuel cell generator, the VE100 v2, at the recent Fuel Cell Forum in Lucerne, Switzerland. The new unit – for use in remote locations and for battery charging – is smaller and lighter than the previous model, but delivers more power. A significant innovation in the VE100 v2 is the addition of a new liquid petroleum gas (LPG) reformer, which means the unit can be powered by either stored hydrogen or from commonly available propane or butane. The PEM fuel cells for the VE100 are supplied by Canadian-based Palcan Fuel Cells. Last fall Voller signed a licensing agreement with QinetiQ in the UK to manufacture the latter’s 2 We tubular hydrogen-based PEM fuel cell technology, which needs no pumps or fans and can be adapted to run on liquid fuels. Voller is also building a new manufacturing facility in Yorkshire. Contact: Voller Energy, Basingstoke, Hampshire, UK. Tel: +44 1256 406780, www.voller.com
CaFCP launches hydrogen fuel nozzle initiative
T
he California Fuel Cell Partnership has launched an innovative program to encourage makers of hydrogen-dispensing nozzles to demonstrate that their equipment meets industry performance standards for hydrogen systems. CaFCP will award matching funds to help cover testing costs. ‘As more hydrogen fueling stations are built in California and around the world, it is vitally important that the fuel dispensing nozzles are verified to industry standards,’ explains CaFCP’s executive director, Catherine Dunwoody. By encouraging nozzle manufacturers to verify their
equipment sooner rather than later, CaFCP aims to accelerate the placement of FCVs in fleets and other demonstration programs. Companies were invited to submit their nozzle to third-party testing to meet the design standard SAE J2600, Compressed hydrogen surface vehicle refueling connection devices. As an incentive, CaFCP will award 50% of the testing cost, up to $25 000, to up to four manufacturers. Contact: California Fuel Cell Partnership, West Sacramento, California, USA. Tel: +l 916 371 2870, www.cafcp.org
NETL opens unique fuel cell/ turbine hybrid research facility
T
he US Department of Energy has opened a new Hybrid Performance (Hyper) Facility, which will develop control strategies for the reliable operation of fuel cell/turbine hybrids. The facility is now fully operational at DOE’s National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) in Morgantown, West Virginia. Combined fuel cell/turbine systems achieve fuel efficiency and emissions performance beyond the reach of single stand-alone systems. The Hyper facility provides a unique opportunity for researchers to explore issues related to the coupling of fuel cell and gas turbine technologies. While the efficiency benefits of hybrid plants are well recognized, controlling the flow of power from both the fuel cell and turbine during load changes is expected to be more complicated than in conventional power systems. ‘Others have shown that a fuel cell can be coupled to a turbine at a steady state,’ says NETL scientist David Tucker, who oversees the Hyper facility. ‘We’re going to show how to make it work while the electrical load is changing.’ Tucker explains that in some hybrid configurations, fuel cell flows cannot be abruptly controlled, yet at times the energy input to the turbine needs to be quickly adjusted to meet changes in load without over- or underspeed problems. ‘A variety of strategies are possible to address this issue, such as loading devices, energy storage devices, or defining new control strategies,’ he says.
Contact: David A. Tucker, Hybrid Performance Facility, Combustion & Engine Dynamics Division, National Energy Technology Laboratory, Morgantown, West Virginia, USA. Tel: + 1 304 285 1331, Email: [email protected], www.netl.doe.gov/ products/r&d/combustion/hyper.htm
August 2004
HydrogenSource to be dissolved, as reforming falls from favor for FCVs
C
onnecticut-based fuel processing developer HydrogenSource is being closed down, following a decision by the joint venture’s owners, UTC Fuel Cells and Shell Hydrogen. The JV’s owners have recognized that over the past three years the evolving hydrogen industry has moved away from on-board fuel processors for hydrogen-fueled vehicles, even though HydrogenSource has made good progress in its fuel processing work. The market demand for the products in development has shifted in both direction and timing, as onboard fuel processing is replaced with on-board hydrogen storage. Recently HydrogenSource embarked on the development of two promising applications – fuel processors for diesel engine emission reduction, and distributed hydrogen generation. While the technologies look promising, market analysis shows the demand for these products is not likely to develop into a viable commercial business in the near future. The technologies contributed to HydrogenSource by UTC Fuel Cells and Shell Hydrogen will revert back to their respective owners, while technology developed by HydrogenSource will be jointly shared. HydrogenSource was formed in May 2001 by UTC Fuel Cells and Shell Hydrogen (US) to develop, manufacture and sell fuel processors 10
Fuel Cells Bulletin
and hydrogen generation systems for emerging fuel cell and hydrogen fuel applications. Initial efforts were focused primarily on reformers for stationary fuel cells and on-board fuel processors for hydrogen-fueled vehicles. Contact: UTC Fuel Cells, South Windsor, Connecticut, USA. Tel: +1 866 383 5235, www.utcfuelcells.com Or contact: Shell Hydrogen, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Tel: +31 20 630 9111, www.shell.com/hydrogen
Voller upgrades portable fuel cell generator
U
K-based fuel cell integrator Voller Energy launched an updated version of its portable PEM fuel cell generator, the VE100 v2, at the recent Fuel Cell Forum in Lucerne, Switzerland. The new unit – for use in remote locations and for battery charging – is smaller and lighter than the previous model, but delivers more power. A significant innovation in the VE100 v2 is the addition of a new liquid petroleum gas (LPG) reformer, which means the unit can be powered by either stored hydrogen or from commonly available propane or butane. The PEM fuel cells for the VE100 are supplied by Canadian-based Palcan Fuel Cells. Last fall Voller signed a licensing agreement with QinetiQ in the UK to manufacture the latter’s 2 We tubular hydrogen-based PEM fuel cell technology, which needs no pumps or fans and can be adapted to run on liquid fuels. Voller is also building a new manufacturing facility in Yorkshire. Contact: Voller Energy, Basingstoke, Hampshire, UK. Tel: +44 1256 406780, www.voller.com
CaFCP launches hydrogen fuel nozzle initiative
T
he California Fuel Cell Partnership has launched an innovative program to encourage makers of hydrogen-dispensing nozzles to demonstrate that their equipment meets industry performance standards for hydrogen systems. CaFCP will award matching funds to help cover testing costs. ‘As more hydrogen fueling stations are built in California and around the world, it is vitally important that the fuel dispensing nozzles are verified to industry standards,’ explains CaFCP’s executive director, Catherine Dunwoody. By encouraging nozzle manufacturers to verify their
equipment sooner rather than later, CaFCP aims to accelerate the placement of FCVs in fleets and other demonstration programs. Companies were invited to submit their nozzle to third-party testing to meet the design standard SAE J2600, Compressed hydrogen surface vehicle refueling connection devices. As an incentive, CaFCP will award 50% of the testing cost, up to $25 000, to up to four manufacturers. Contact: California Fuel Cell Partnership, West Sacramento, California, USA. Tel: +l 916 371 2870, www.cafcp.org
NETL opens unique fuel cell/ turbine hybrid research facility
T
he US Department of Energy has opened a new Hybrid Performance (Hyper) Facility, which will develop control strategies for the reliable operation of fuel cell/turbine hybrids. The facility is now fully operational at DOE’s National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) in Morgantown, West Virginia. Combined fuel cell/turbine systems achieve fuel efficiency and emissions performance beyond the reach of single stand-alone systems. The Hyper facility provides a unique opportunity for researchers to explore issues related to the coupling of fuel cell and gas turbine technologies. While the efficiency benefits of hybrid plants are well recognized, controlling the flow of power from both the fuel cell and turbine during load changes is expected to be more complicated than in conventional power systems. ‘Others have shown that a fuel cell can be coupled to a turbine at a steady state,’ says NETL scientist David Tucker, who oversees the Hyper facility. ‘We’re going to show how to make it work while the electrical load is changing.’ Tucker explains that in some hybrid configurations, fuel cell flows cannot be abruptly controlled, yet at times the energy input to the turbine needs to be quickly adjusted to meet changes in load without over- or underspeed problems. ‘A variety of strategies are possible to address this issue, such as loading devices, energy storage devices, or defining new control strategies,’ he says.
Contact: David A. Tucker, Hybrid Performance Facility, Combustion & Engine Dynamics Division, National Energy Technology Laboratory, Morgantown, West Virginia, USA. Tel: + 1 304 285 1331, Email: [email protected], www.netl.doe.gov/ products/r&d/combustion/hyper.htm
August 2004