- Email: [email protected]
FCE, Enbridge power up first DFC-ERG system
NEWS Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council. The installation uses the natural gas infrastructure, with the gas converted into hydrogen by a reformer. Professor Kevin Kendall from the University of Birmingham’s School of Chemical Engineering is leading the project to learn more about hydrogen and fuel cells in a domestic context. By remotely monitoring the equipment at the house, researchers can find out more about the fuel cell system, its efficiency, performance, operation and durability. A supply chain in the West Midlands is also being established to allow small companies to manufacture components for this growing market. The Baxi Innotech fuel cell generates 1.5 kW of electricity and provides 3 kW of heat suitable for domestic heating and hot water, which is transferred to a 600-liter water tank heat store next to the fuel cell. The heat is circulated through conventional radiators and to the house’s hot water tank, while the electricity generated powers the house. Excess electricity is exported to the National Grid, while if more electricity is required, this is imported from the grid. BCHG launched its first residential fuel cell cogeneration trial in a house in 2004 [FCB, January 2005]. That system was not grid-connected because the grid can interfere with operation, so that variable was eliminated; the new system is connected to the grid. Previously the hydrogen supply was pure bottled gas, but now a reformer is used. And the new system uses a PEM fuel cell, rather than alkaline technology from Canadian-based AFS Energy Inc. The University of Birmingham has recently unveiled its own hydrogen fueling station [FCB, June 2008]. The university also owns five hydrogen fuel cell cars, which are being used in a study to ascertain their feasibility.
and backup power systems for sale to leading telecom carriers worldwide. The CommScope family of products is being expanded under Andrew Wireless Solutions to address the unique requirements of wireless and wireline operators around the world. The Hydrogenics HyPM® fuel cell modules will be embedded as part of Andrews’ EcoPower Integrated Fuel Cell Solution. The hydrogen PEM fuel cells, housed in Andrews’ secure, weather-resistant cabinets, will provide a smaller footprint and more dense power backup solution than has been available so far. Traditionally, communication centers have depended on either diesel generators or batteries for backup power. Both are expensive and environmentally unfriendly solutions. In addition, batteries, which lose their power and must be replaced frequently, are not suitable for powering networks for extended periods of time. The use of hydrogen fuel cells will reduce operating costs, increase reliability, and extend runtime duration, while reducing maintenance cost, minimizing environmental impact, and reducing the ‘total cost of ownership’. The solution is also ideal for addressing mandated minimum power supply requirements, such as the US Federal Communications Commission’s mandate that calls for at least 8 h of power backup at cell sites.
Contact: Professor Kevin Kendall, Fuel Cell Group, School of Chemical Engineering, University of Birmingham, UK. Tel: +44 121 414 2739, Email: [email protected], www.fuelcells.bham.ac.uk
C
Or contact: Baxi Innotech GmbH, Hamburg, Germany. Tel +49 40 2366 7600, www.baxi-innotech.de
Hydrogenics fuel cells for CommScope telecoms backup power
C
anadian-based electrolyzer and fuel cell system manufacturer Hydrogenics will deliver fuel cell power modules, along with its power conditioning and controller modules, to CommScope in North Carolina, which will integrate them into extended-run
December 2008
Contact: Hydrogenics Corporation, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. Tel: +1 905 361 3660, www.hydrogenics.com
large stationary
FCE, Enbridge power up first DFC-ERG system onnecticut-based FuelCell Energy and Enbridge Inc in Calgary, Canada have inaugurated the first Direct Fuel Cell-Energy Recovery Generation™ (DFC-ERG™) power plant. The ribboncutting ceremony took place recently at the Toronto headquarters of utility Enbridge Gas Distribution Inc. The plant, which produces 2.2 MW – enough to power about 1700 residences – is also the first multi-MW commercial fuel cell to operate in Canada. Support for this C$10 million (US$8.2m) breakthrough project was provided by both the federal and provincial governments: the Canadian government provided C$2.3m (US$1.9m) in funding via Natural Resources Canada, and the Ontario government participated through a C$500 000 (US$408 000) grant from the ministry of research and innovation. In March,
IN BRIEF HydroGen LLC files for bankruptcy Ohio-based, phosphoric acid fuel cell developer HydroGen LLC, a subsidiary of HydroGen Corporation, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, after failing to find a buyer or obtain additional financing. The firm’s move came despite recently securing $2m in funding through a loan and security agreement with Samsung C&T Corporation and the Federated Kaufmann Fund [FCB, October 2008]. HydroGen (www.hydrogenllc.com) has been developing multi-MW fuel cell systems utilizing its proprietary 400 kW PAFC expertise, based on fuel cell technology originally developed by Westinghouse Corporation. The company has been operating a commercial scale demonstration power plant at the ASHTA Chemicals facility in Ashtabula, Ohio [FCB, June 2008]. Triax Capital Advisors is marketing for sale the assets of Hydrogen LLC. ‘The clean tech sector is very hot right now, and we are hopeful that we will be successful in this restructuring process and finding the right strategic alternative for the company,’ says Joseph E. Sarachek of Triax. Pillared graphene as 3D network nanostructure for enhanced hydrogen storage Researchers at the University of Crete in Greece have shown in a theoretical study that carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and graphene sheets can be combined to form novel 3D nanostructures offering enhanced hydrogen storage. This novel material, when doped with lithium cations, can almost reach the US Department of Energy’s 2010 hydrogen storage volumetric target for mobile applications under ambient conditions. The novel material has a large surface area and tunable pore size, and consists of parallel graphene layers at a variable distance, stabilized by CNTs perpendicular to the graphene planes. In this way, the CNTs support the graphene layers like pillars, and assemble a 3D building block by reducing the empty space between the graphene layers and filling it with CNTs. Ab initio calculations revealed that, even on the junction of this material, the hydrogen interaction remains weak, comparable with known hydrogen−carbon interactions. The importance of the ‘charge-induced dipole’ in such an interaction was verified, since the hydrogen bond is more than an order of magnitude different when a lithium cation is present. The results show that, if the material is doped with lithium cations, it can store up to 41 g/l of H2 under ambient conditions, close to the DOE volumetric requirement for mobile applications. The team is now challenging experimental researchers to fabricate this material and validate its storage capacity. The research, by Georgios K. Dimitrakakis et al., was published recently in the American Chemical Society journal Nano Letters [DOI: 10.1021/nl801417w].
Fuel Cells Bulletin
5
NEWS the City of Toronto provided further support by enacting a by-law allowing residents and businesses to export clean electricity to the grid. ‘We’ve taken two proven, low-carbon technologies and integrated them in a unique way to increase the environmental benefits,’ comments Patrick D. Daniel, president/CEO of Enbridge. ‘The new technology will offer the highest natural gas-to-electricity efficiency of any distributed generation technology, and since it operates without the combustion of fuel, the power has near-zero air pollutants.’ Natural gas travels long distances in pipelines at high pressure, but before it can be safely distributed to end-users, the pressure must be reduced. The DFC-ERG power plant directs the high-pressure gas through a turbo expander, which captures the ‘waste’ energy for power generation. Integration of the fuel cell more than doubles the amount of low-impact electricity that is delivered to the grid, and the non-combustion heat from the fuel cell eliminates the need for a boiler. DFC-ERG hybrid fuel cell plants offer unparalleled efficiency gains. Since natural gas pressure-reducing stations are in or near urban centers, the power is generated where it is needed most, reducing electric grid system losses. The plant will utilize a 1.2 MW fuel cell power conditioning system from Massachusettsbased Satcon Technology, as the enabling link between the fuel cell and the utility grid.
Under the Army’s Small Business Innovation Research Program, QuantumSphere will develop a unitized reformed methanol fuel cell. In the first, nine-month phase of the project, the company will receive $120 000 to investigate the synthesis and electrochemistry of bifunctional anodes, high-temperature electrolyte membranes, and low-cost cathode catalysts for a 5 W fuel cell. If successful, QuantumSphere will move to the second phase of the project – a two-year, $750 000 effort to develop a 200 W methanol reforming fuel cell in a smaller, lighter formfactor to power portable electronic devices in the Army’s Future Force Warrior program. The fuel cell is intended to help soldiers operate portable electronic devices without the noise and heat signatures produced by diesel generators. ‘We feel the goals of the first phase of the project are quite feasible for the development of new materials in highly portable unitized methanol fuel cells,’ says Subra Iyer, the firm’s principal technologist. ‘In the first phase, we will be working on synthesizing some of the hightemperature electrolytes needed for the fuel cell, and we have several indications of why we feel this approach will work. In the second phase, we will work on improving the power efficiency and operational issues of this technology, that will enable the Army to mount these fuel cells on trucks and provide silent power without the use of diesel generators.’
Contact: FuelCell Energy Inc, Danbury, Connecticut, USA. Tel: +1 203 825 6000, www.fuelcellenergy.com
Contact: QuantumSphere Inc, Santa Ana, California, USA. Tel: +1 714 545 6266, www.qsinano.com
Or contact: Enbridge Inc, Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Tel: +1 403 231 3900, www.enbridge.com Or contact: Satcon Technology Corporation, Boston, Massachusetts, USA. Tel: +1 617 897 2400, www.satcon.com
DuPont/SFC win US DoD wearable power competition
portable & micro
QuantumSphere wins US Army funding for portable reformed methanol fuel cell
T
he US Army has awarded a grant to California-based QuantumSphere for the development of advanced fuel cell technology that improves efficiency, integration and portability and reduces costs for portable power applications. The company is a leading developer of advanced catalyst materials, highperformance electrode systems, and related process chemistries for portable power and clean-tech applications. 6
Fuel Cells Bulletin
T
he DuPont/SFC Smart Fuel Cell team has won the US Department of Defense’s Wearable Power Prize competition, with a $1 million prize. The US/German team won by building the lightest wearable system that provided an average of 20 W of power for more than 96 h and weighed less than 4 kg (8.8 lb), attached to a standard military vest. Michigan-based Adaptive Materials Inc was awarded $500 000 for second place, while SFC and its Virginiabased partner Capitol Connections LLC won third prize, worth $250 000, with the Jenny 600S system. The competition was launched in July 2007 by DoD’s Research and Engineering Directorate to help develop a long-endurance, lightweight power pack for ground combat. After beginning with 169 registered entries, the ultimate
testing concluded in early October when the final six teams met at the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center in Twentynine Palms, California. All the finalists used either fuel cell or battery technologies, or a combination of both, to meet DoD’s rigorous standards. The winning lightweight M-25 portable fuel cell combines DuPont’s direct methanol fuel cell technology with SFC’s commercially proven systems, products and integration expertise. The M-25 design was modified to further reduce weight and extend performance. The M-25 standard design, when worn by soldiers in the field for extended missions, is up to 80% lighter than conventional power sources, yet capable of powering a wide range of soldier equipment. Earlier this year the DuPont/SFC M-25 was deployed for limited use in the field for the US Army [FCB, August 2008]. SFC’s Jenny systems are in operation or field tests at numerous Nato defense organizations [FCB, April 2008]. Both systems include a fuel cell, fuel cartridge, rechargeable Li-ion battery and DC/DC converter. They can power a wide range of equipment, such as GPS navigation devices, communications equipment, computers, sensors, C4ISR (command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance) gear, robots and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). Adaptive Materials’ solid oxide fuel cell system was placed second by virtue of weighing just 28 g (1 oz) more than the winning unit. AMI’s fuel cells produce power from lightweight, globally available propane. The availability and cost of propane are key factors in the firm’s commercialization efforts and the continued adoption of its SOFCs in the military sector [FCB, November 2008]. Contact: DuPont Fuel Cells, Wilmington, Delaware, USA. Tel: 1 800 207 0756 (tollfree in US), Fax: +1 302 999 3284, www.fuelcells.dupont.com Or contact: SFC Smart Fuel Cell AG, Brunnthal-Nord, Germany. Tel: +49 89 673 5920, www.sfc.com Or contact: Adaptive Materials Inc, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA. Tel: +1 734 302 7632, www.adaptivematerials.com For more on the DoD Wearable Power Prize, go to: www.dod.mil/ddre/prize/final_event.html
fueling
Air Liquide launches Horizon Hydrogen Energy program
T
he European Commission has approved funding for the Horizon Hydrogen Energy (H2E) innovation
December 2008
and backup power systems for sale to leading telecom carriers worldwide. The CommScope family of products is being expanded under Andrew Wireless Solutions to address the unique requirements of wireless and wireline operators around the world. The Hydrogenics HyPM® fuel cell modules will be embedded as part of Andrews’ EcoPower Integrated Fuel Cell Solution. The hydrogen PEM fuel cells, housed in Andrews’ secure, weather-resistant cabinets, will provide a smaller footprint and more dense power backup solution than has been available so far. Traditionally, communication centers have depended on either diesel generators or batteries for backup power. Both are expensive and environmentally unfriendly solutions. In addition, batteries, which lose their power and must be replaced frequently, are not suitable for powering networks for extended periods of time. The use of hydrogen fuel cells will reduce operating costs, increase reliability, and extend runtime duration, while reducing maintenance cost, minimizing environmental impact, and reducing the ‘total cost of ownership’. The solution is also ideal for addressing mandated minimum power supply requirements, such as the US Federal Communications Commission’s mandate that calls for at least 8 h of power backup at cell sites.
Contact: Professor Kevin Kendall, Fuel Cell Group, School of Chemical Engineering, University of Birmingham, UK. Tel: +44 121 414 2739, Email: [email protected], www.fuelcells.bham.ac.uk
C
Or contact: Baxi Innotech GmbH, Hamburg, Germany. Tel +49 40 2366 7600, www.baxi-innotech.de
Hydrogenics fuel cells for CommScope telecoms backup power
C
anadian-based electrolyzer and fuel cell system manufacturer Hydrogenics will deliver fuel cell power modules, along with its power conditioning and controller modules, to CommScope in North Carolina, which will integrate them into extended-run
December 2008
Contact: Hydrogenics Corporation, Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. Tel: +1 905 361 3660, www.hydrogenics.com
large stationary
FCE, Enbridge power up first DFC-ERG system onnecticut-based FuelCell Energy and Enbridge Inc in Calgary, Canada have inaugurated the first Direct Fuel Cell-Energy Recovery Generation™ (DFC-ERG™) power plant. The ribboncutting ceremony took place recently at the Toronto headquarters of utility Enbridge Gas Distribution Inc. The plant, which produces 2.2 MW – enough to power about 1700 residences – is also the first multi-MW commercial fuel cell to operate in Canada. Support for this C$10 million (US$8.2m) breakthrough project was provided by both the federal and provincial governments: the Canadian government provided C$2.3m (US$1.9m) in funding via Natural Resources Canada, and the Ontario government participated through a C$500 000 (US$408 000) grant from the ministry of research and innovation. In March,
IN BRIEF HydroGen LLC files for bankruptcy Ohio-based, phosphoric acid fuel cell developer HydroGen LLC, a subsidiary of HydroGen Corporation, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, after failing to find a buyer or obtain additional financing. The firm’s move came despite recently securing $2m in funding through a loan and security agreement with Samsung C&T Corporation and the Federated Kaufmann Fund [FCB, October 2008]. HydroGen (www.hydrogenllc.com) has been developing multi-MW fuel cell systems utilizing its proprietary 400 kW PAFC expertise, based on fuel cell technology originally developed by Westinghouse Corporation. The company has been operating a commercial scale demonstration power plant at the ASHTA Chemicals facility in Ashtabula, Ohio [FCB, June 2008]. Triax Capital Advisors is marketing for sale the assets of Hydrogen LLC. ‘The clean tech sector is very hot right now, and we are hopeful that we will be successful in this restructuring process and finding the right strategic alternative for the company,’ says Joseph E. Sarachek of Triax. Pillared graphene as 3D network nanostructure for enhanced hydrogen storage Researchers at the University of Crete in Greece have shown in a theoretical study that carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and graphene sheets can be combined to form novel 3D nanostructures offering enhanced hydrogen storage. This novel material, when doped with lithium cations, can almost reach the US Department of Energy’s 2010 hydrogen storage volumetric target for mobile applications under ambient conditions. The novel material has a large surface area and tunable pore size, and consists of parallel graphene layers at a variable distance, stabilized by CNTs perpendicular to the graphene planes. In this way, the CNTs support the graphene layers like pillars, and assemble a 3D building block by reducing the empty space between the graphene layers and filling it with CNTs. Ab initio calculations revealed that, even on the junction of this material, the hydrogen interaction remains weak, comparable with known hydrogen−carbon interactions. The importance of the ‘charge-induced dipole’ in such an interaction was verified, since the hydrogen bond is more than an order of magnitude different when a lithium cation is present. The results show that, if the material is doped with lithium cations, it can store up to 41 g/l of H2 under ambient conditions, close to the DOE volumetric requirement for mobile applications. The team is now challenging experimental researchers to fabricate this material and validate its storage capacity. The research, by Georgios K. Dimitrakakis et al., was published recently in the American Chemical Society journal Nano Letters [DOI: 10.1021/nl801417w].
Fuel Cells Bulletin
5
NEWS the City of Toronto provided further support by enacting a by-law allowing residents and businesses to export clean electricity to the grid. ‘We’ve taken two proven, low-carbon technologies and integrated them in a unique way to increase the environmental benefits,’ comments Patrick D. Daniel, president/CEO of Enbridge. ‘The new technology will offer the highest natural gas-to-electricity efficiency of any distributed generation technology, and since it operates without the combustion of fuel, the power has near-zero air pollutants.’ Natural gas travels long distances in pipelines at high pressure, but before it can be safely distributed to end-users, the pressure must be reduced. The DFC-ERG power plant directs the high-pressure gas through a turbo expander, which captures the ‘waste’ energy for power generation. Integration of the fuel cell more than doubles the amount of low-impact electricity that is delivered to the grid, and the non-combustion heat from the fuel cell eliminates the need for a boiler. DFC-ERG hybrid fuel cell plants offer unparalleled efficiency gains. Since natural gas pressure-reducing stations are in or near urban centers, the power is generated where it is needed most, reducing electric grid system losses. The plant will utilize a 1.2 MW fuel cell power conditioning system from Massachusettsbased Satcon Technology, as the enabling link between the fuel cell and the utility grid.
Under the Army’s Small Business Innovation Research Program, QuantumSphere will develop a unitized reformed methanol fuel cell. In the first, nine-month phase of the project, the company will receive $120 000 to investigate the synthesis and electrochemistry of bifunctional anodes, high-temperature electrolyte membranes, and low-cost cathode catalysts for a 5 W fuel cell. If successful, QuantumSphere will move to the second phase of the project – a two-year, $750 000 effort to develop a 200 W methanol reforming fuel cell in a smaller, lighter formfactor to power portable electronic devices in the Army’s Future Force Warrior program. The fuel cell is intended to help soldiers operate portable electronic devices without the noise and heat signatures produced by diesel generators. ‘We feel the goals of the first phase of the project are quite feasible for the development of new materials in highly portable unitized methanol fuel cells,’ says Subra Iyer, the firm’s principal technologist. ‘In the first phase, we will be working on synthesizing some of the hightemperature electrolytes needed for the fuel cell, and we have several indications of why we feel this approach will work. In the second phase, we will work on improving the power efficiency and operational issues of this technology, that will enable the Army to mount these fuel cells on trucks and provide silent power without the use of diesel generators.’
Contact: FuelCell Energy Inc, Danbury, Connecticut, USA. Tel: +1 203 825 6000, www.fuelcellenergy.com
Contact: QuantumSphere Inc, Santa Ana, California, USA. Tel: +1 714 545 6266, www.qsinano.com
Or contact: Enbridge Inc, Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Tel: +1 403 231 3900, www.enbridge.com Or contact: Satcon Technology Corporation, Boston, Massachusetts, USA. Tel: +1 617 897 2400, www.satcon.com
DuPont/SFC win US DoD wearable power competition
portable & micro
QuantumSphere wins US Army funding for portable reformed methanol fuel cell
T
he US Army has awarded a grant to California-based QuantumSphere for the development of advanced fuel cell technology that improves efficiency, integration and portability and reduces costs for portable power applications. The company is a leading developer of advanced catalyst materials, highperformance electrode systems, and related process chemistries for portable power and clean-tech applications. 6
Fuel Cells Bulletin
T
he DuPont/SFC Smart Fuel Cell team has won the US Department of Defense’s Wearable Power Prize competition, with a $1 million prize. The US/German team won by building the lightest wearable system that provided an average of 20 W of power for more than 96 h and weighed less than 4 kg (8.8 lb), attached to a standard military vest. Michigan-based Adaptive Materials Inc was awarded $500 000 for second place, while SFC and its Virginiabased partner Capitol Connections LLC won third prize, worth $250 000, with the Jenny 600S system. The competition was launched in July 2007 by DoD’s Research and Engineering Directorate to help develop a long-endurance, lightweight power pack for ground combat. After beginning with 169 registered entries, the ultimate
testing concluded in early October when the final six teams met at the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center in Twentynine Palms, California. All the finalists used either fuel cell or battery technologies, or a combination of both, to meet DoD’s rigorous standards. The winning lightweight M-25 portable fuel cell combines DuPont’s direct methanol fuel cell technology with SFC’s commercially proven systems, products and integration expertise. The M-25 design was modified to further reduce weight and extend performance. The M-25 standard design, when worn by soldiers in the field for extended missions, is up to 80% lighter than conventional power sources, yet capable of powering a wide range of soldier equipment. Earlier this year the DuPont/SFC M-25 was deployed for limited use in the field for the US Army [FCB, August 2008]. SFC’s Jenny systems are in operation or field tests at numerous Nato defense organizations [FCB, April 2008]. Both systems include a fuel cell, fuel cartridge, rechargeable Li-ion battery and DC/DC converter. They can power a wide range of equipment, such as GPS navigation devices, communications equipment, computers, sensors, C4ISR (command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance) gear, robots and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). Adaptive Materials’ solid oxide fuel cell system was placed second by virtue of weighing just 28 g (1 oz) more than the winning unit. AMI’s fuel cells produce power from lightweight, globally available propane. The availability and cost of propane are key factors in the firm’s commercialization efforts and the continued adoption of its SOFCs in the military sector [FCB, November 2008]. Contact: DuPont Fuel Cells, Wilmington, Delaware, USA. Tel: 1 800 207 0756 (tollfree in US), Fax: +1 302 999 3284, www.fuelcells.dupont.com Or contact: SFC Smart Fuel Cell AG, Brunnthal-Nord, Germany. Tel: +49 89 673 5920, www.sfc.com Or contact: Adaptive Materials Inc, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA. Tel: +1 734 302 7632, www.adaptivematerials.com For more on the DoD Wearable Power Prize, go to: www.dod.mil/ddre/prize/final_event.html
fueling
Air Liquide launches Horizon Hydrogen Energy program
T
he European Commission has approved funding for the Horizon Hydrogen Energy (H2E) innovation
December 2008