Fuel cell and hydrogen technologies research, development and demonstration activities in Singapore – An update

Fuel cell and hydrogen technologies research, development and demonstration activities in Singapore – An update

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Review Article

Fuel cell and hydrogen technologies research, development and demonstration activities in Singapore e An update Siew Hwa Chan a,b,**, Jan Pawel Stempien b,*, Ovi Lian Ding b, Pei-Chen Su a, Hiang Kwee Ho b a

School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, 50 Nanyang Avenue, Singapore 639798, Singapore b Energy Research Institute at NTU, Nanyang Technological University, 1 CleanTech Loop, #06-04, Singapore 637141, Singapore

article info

abstract

Article history:

In this paper the authors review the activities of Singapore-based research institutions and

Received 18 March 2016

business players in the field of fuel cells and associated hydrogen technologies undertaken

Received in revised form

till date. The scope of this paper spans almost 15 years of accomplishments and focuses on

7 May 2016

highlighting the acquired capabilities and achievements. The review shows slow, but

Accepted 18 May 2016

consistently growing research activities, demonstration undertakings and business en-

Available online xxx

deavours of local and overseas companies. © 2016 Hydrogen Energy Publications LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Fuel Cell Hydrogen Singapore Review Research, development and demonstration

Contents Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Singapore's interest in energy and environmental sustainability . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Singapore's interest in hydrogen technologies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Hydrogen demonstration activities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Hydrogen related research and development activities in Singapore . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

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* Corresponding author. ** Corresponding author. Energy Research Institute at NTU, Nanyang Technological University, 1 CleanTech Loop, #06-04, Singapore 637141, Singapore. E-mail addresses: [email protected] (S.H. Chan), [email protected] (J.P. Stempien). http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2016.05.192 0360-3199/© 2016 Hydrogen Energy Publications LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Please cite this article in press as: Chan SH, et al., Fuel cell and hydrogen technologies research, development and demonstration activities in Singapore e An update, International Journal of Hydrogen Energy (2016), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2016.05.192

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Singapore's collaborations with overseas research institutions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Private sector activity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Acknowledgements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Introduction In 2013, Singapore was home to 5.4 million people living on slightly over than 716 km2 [1]. The busy island city-state located 140 km north from the equator generated 302.25 billion current-US$ (2013) GDP [2] making it one of the richest countries in terms of PPP-adjusted GDP per capita [3]. To this end, the country has consumed 26.1 Mtoe of primary energy and emitted 45.56 Mt of CO2 from burning of fossil fuels [4]. The country has virtually no natural resources and depends on imports to satisfy the most basic of its needs, including water and energy supply. Singapore sees becoming economically and environmentally sustainable as a prerequisite for continuous social development. The efforts of the country are reflected in being named Asia's Greenest City by the Siemens-Economist Intelligence Unit in 2011 [5]. To highlight the significance of this achievement, it is remarked that the World Economic Forum's pilot Environmental Sustainability Index ranked Singapore as bottom 10 worst performing countries as recently as in the year 2000 [6]. The country is now the lowest emitter of greenhouse gases per GDP among its ASEAN peers and on par with the lowest polluting countries, like Switzerland, Japan or France. However, the energy consumption per capita and emissions per capita are high, placing Singapore as 27th in terms of emissions per capita [7] and close to OECD average in terms of energy use per capita.1 Since 2009 Singapore has been publishing The Sustainable Singapore Blueprint. In the most recent edition (2015), the country looks at adopting eco-friendly buildings, sustainable transport, efficient energy and water use and improving air quality, among others. To achieve the ambitious goals of the blueprint, we believe that the use of hydrogen technologies along with solar, energy storage and other sustainable technologies is necessary. Fuel cells can be used as nonintermittent electricity and heat sources that are powered by solar- and wind-renewable hydrogen or the by-product hydrogen available from local chemical and petrochemical industries. In such scenario, hydrogen is a clean energy carrier allowing to potentially increase the energy conversion efficiency, resolve intermittency issue of renewable energy, and provide more environmentally friendly energy system [8]. Similar, country-focused studies, were reported for China [9], European Union [10], the USA [11], India [12], Japan [13] and Australia [14]. Hydrogen is recognized as one of possible future energy carriers. Research programs on fuel cells, electrolysis, reforming, storage and other facets of the hydrogen

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Based on own calculations using data from the World Bank, OECD and International Energy Agency.

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technology are being conducted at numerous institutions around the world [15e21].

Singapore's interest in energy and environmental sustainability The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change conference in 1997 cemented the need for sensible use of resources, especially energy related ones. It had focused on the greenhouse gas emissions related to increasing use of energy, resulting from economic growth. The problem concerns developed and developing countries alike. A need has been identified to improve the utilization of natural resources and reduce dependence of economic growth on these resources. Despite the energy use in Singapore per constant value GDP is increasing over the past 25 years at a rate of 0.253% per annum, the greenhouse gases emissions per constant value GDP dropped by a significant 13.6% per annum showing a significant devotion to making the country sustainable.2 Some of the possible contributing factors to this trend are the switching to natural gas as a main fuel in electricity generation, imposing strict rules pertaining car ownership and social promotion of energy savings and energy efficiency. A number of government agencies were formed in order to institutionalise the government's approach and organisation to address the problem and made the promotion of sustainability less dependent on political and economic circumstance. These agencies included Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources, National Environment Agency, National Climate Change Secretariat, Energy Market Authority, Urban Redevelopment Authority, etc. In 2010, the National Climate Change Secretariat (NCCS) was formed to develop and implement Singapore's domestic and international policies and strategies to tackle climate change [22]. The core mission of NCCS is to lead the whole-of-nation effort to address the challenges and opportunities of climate change. The agency is responsible for:  Facilitating efforts to mitigate carbon emissions in all sectors,  Helping Singapore adapt to the effects of climate change,  Harnessing economic and green growth opportunities arising from climate change,  Encouraging public awareness and action on climate change. Singapore is enthusiastically looking forward to adapting renewable energy, however, the availability of these sources

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Based on own calculations using data from the World Bank and International Energy Agency.

Please cite this article in press as: Chan SH, et al., Fuel cell and hydrogen technologies research, development and demonstration activities in Singapore e An update, International Journal of Hydrogen Energy (2016), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2016.05.192

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is limited [23]. The wind speed in Singapore island is on average3 below that of usability for any modern wind turbine [24], therefore there is no commercially installed wind turbines. However, recently some promising sites off-shore main island and some of the coastal areas were identified as potentially suitable for deployment of wind turbines. Proximity to the equator suggests that there should be abundance of solar resources, however assuming that the solar panels are built on top of all the buildings in Singapore (less than 20% of total land area is used for buildings) and that an average PV panel produces 0.175 kW/m2, the maximum power that can be installed in Singapore is 25.13 GW. This number multiplied by 1168 of sun-peak hours [25] produces 29.35 TWh per annum of electricity, which is about 60% of total consumption of electrical energy and only 12.65% of the total energy consumed at the present [4]. Even smaller number is indicated in Solar PV roadmap for Singapore suggesting 7 to 15 TWh per annum of energy produced from Solar PV by 2050 [26]. Nevertheless, a number of solar companies are present in the country and there is an active research community contributing to RD&D. To date, Singapore has ~25.5 MWp of solar capacity contributing to ~20 GWh per annum of electrical energy [27]. Efforts are being made to explore capacity in marine sources of energy. Energy Research Institute at Nanyang Technological University (ERI@N) and Energy Studies Institute (ESI) at the National University of Singapore were opened, respectively, in 2010 and 2007 and are flagship research institutes working on technology development and economy- and policy-related issues. The Energy Studies Institute at the NUS deals with energy economics, energy & the environment and energy security [28]. The Energy Research Institute at NTU has seven cross-discipline research areas including energy storage, fuel cells, sustainable building technologies, maritime energy, solar energy and fuels, wind and marine renewables and electro-mobility [29], and two flagship projects, i.e., EcoCampus and REIDS. Eco-Campus initiative, focussing on energy efficiency, seeks 35% reduction of NTU's campus energy and water usage, carbon footprint and waste output in about 5 years, ending in 2020 [30]. Renewable Energy Integration Demonstrator - Singapore (REIDS), on the other hand, focussing on renewable energy application, aims at demonstrating the world-largest tropical micro-grid integrating solar, wind, diesel, storage and power-to-gas technologies. The project is expected to attract S$20 million investment from the industry [31]. Since 2008, Singapore is hosting Singapore International Energy Week (SIEW) conference and exhibition aimed at creating platform for energy professionals, policymakers and commentators to discuss and share best practices and solutions in energy sector [32]. The event attracts representatives from global and local energy companies, local and regional universities and regional government officials. Since its inception, it has successfully contributed towards growing of solar business in Singapore. In order to be more sustainable, Singapore needs to increase the efficacy of resource utilization. One of the

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approaches is to adopt highly efficient electrochemical technologies utilizing hydrogen as an energy carrier, resulting in zero-carbon emissions.

Singapore's interest in hydrogen technologies Hydrogen demonstration activities Singapore's journey with hydrogen started in the year 2001, when under the SINERGY (Singapore Initiative in New Energy Technology) program a project was launched that would eventually bring commercially available fuel cell cars to Singapore [33]. Daimler AG and BP joined the program and soon after in 2004 first F-Cell cars arrived in Singapore and first hydrogen refuelling station was opened in July 2004. At the end of 2005 another station was opened. The hydrogen was supplied from Jurong Island, a chemical hub of Singapore. In late 2006, the first station was decommissioned and the second followed its fate not long later. Despite the initial success and continuation to phase two of the project in 2007, the plan was eventually abandoned.4 Another German Car manufacturing giant, BMW, demonstrated its hydrogen technology in Singapore in March 2008, bringing a few of its 7 series hydrogen powered limousines as a part of a world tour of showcasing hydrogen-based mobility solutions [34]. In 2004, a small fuel cell stationary generation system was demonstrated in public housing estate in collaboration with Housing Development Board (HDB). The 5 kW PEM stack was powered by natural gas and was installed by a local company Development Resources Pte Ltd. The company was bought over by Worley Parsons in 2005 [35]. In 2007, a local fuel cell company Horizon Fuel Cell Technologies in partnership with NASA demonstrated a record breaking, fuel cell powered UAV [36]. The vehicle flew 128 km, which is still an officially longest flight for a fuel cell powered drone. The same year they partnered with the German Aerospace Centre and several other companies in HyFish project aimed at demonstrating a zeroemissions hydrogen powered jet [37]. In 2010, researchers from Nanyang Technological University and Tsinghua University developed a fuel cell powered bus that was used by a local bus company SBS Transit to ferry participants of Youth Olympic Games [38]. In 2012, students at Ngee Ann Polytechnic topped Shell Eco-marathon in the Prototype category with their hydrogen fuel cell powered vehicle achieving fuel efficiency of 996 km/l [39]. Demonstration for using fuel cells in marine applications was done in 2012 when NTU, partnering with the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore and Horizon Fuel Cell Systems developed a 5 kW PEM fuel cell as a range extender for hybrid electric vessel [40]. In the first phase the system used pure hydrogen, while methanol-reformed hydrogen was used in the second phase. The further plan is to use natural gas or liquefied natural gas as a source of hydrogen for the third phase of development. Horizon Fuel Cell Technologies partnering with NTU demonstrated a fuel cell powered UAV completely designed and developed in Singapore [41]. In 2014, NTU announced region's first 4

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Annual average 2e3 m/s.

Daimler AG continuous its research and development in fuel cell powered cars in other locations.

Please cite this article in press as: Chan SH, et al., Fuel cell and hydrogen technologies research, development and demonstration activities in Singapore e An update, International Journal of Hydrogen Energy (2016), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2016.05.192

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renewable energy integration demonstration micro-grid that among others tests the power-to-gas technology using electrolyzers to store renewable energy in hydrogen or hydrogenbased fuel form [31]. The same year JTC announced its plan to supply 20% of energy using fuel cell power generator powered by hydrogen from a tech company Sinjia RTE Solutions [42,43]. A 250 kW fuel cell has recently been commissioned out of planned 1 MW. In 2015, Ministry of Home affairs announced to power its new Prison Headquarters from PEM fuel cell generated electricity. The fuel cell is expected to use hydrogen generated from renewable energy and utilizing food waste as feedstock [44].5 Electro Power Systems SA has started a 3 kW hybrid battery-electrolyser-fuel cell energy storage and power back-up demonstrator in cooperation with NTU [45]. The company is planning to jointly demonstrate another 10 kW system in 2016. As a part of Energy Innovation Research Program, NTU, collaboratively with a major PEMFC company and Chemical Industries (Far East) Ltd. is in the midst of setting up a 2.4 kW demonstration PEM fuel cell at Chemical Industries' site on Jurong Island using the by-product hydrogen and featuring in-house developed proprietary chlorine ion tolerant catalyst and impurity adsorber.

Hydrogen related research and development activities in Singapore The fuel cell research group at NTU, which started in 2001, continues to build and develop core capabilities in fuel cell technology and provides technical leadership to industry through collaborative research and development. The group primarily focuses on proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC), solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) and hydrogen related technologies, covering materials, catalysis and electrochemistry, thermo-fluid and design, and product prototyping. The core competencies of the group lie in (a) High performance, ultra-low precious group metal loading fuel cell/electrolyser, (b) On-demand, high energy density portable hydrogen generator, and (c) Complex fuel cell-integrated system for distributed generation, power-to-gas/electrolysis, and microgrid integration. Led by Prof SH Chan [46] and Asst Prof P-C Su [47], the fuel cell research group is supported by about 30 research staff and students. Through the collective efforts of these excellent individuals, the group has developed and patented a number of technologies on catalysts for use in fuel cell, and hydrogen generation and purification. Some of these developments have attracted the interests of commercial companies to collaborate with NTU to further develop into a commercial product. The Group is part of several international collaborations with partner-universities across Europe and Asia including Peking University [48], Deutsches Zentrum fuer Luft-und Raum-fahrt, Commissariat a L'Energye Atomique et aux Energies Alternatives, Denmarks Tekniske Univesitet, Agenzia Nationale per le Nuove Tecnologie, L'Energia e lo Sviluppo Economico Sostenible, Joint Research Centre e European Union, European Institute for Energy Research [49] and Cambridge University [50]. Over the years, research conducted by the Group is hinged along the entire value chain of fuel cells and hydrogen technologies including developing 5

The project is delayed as of December 2015.

new materials and catalysts [51], inventing novel materials' processing methods [52], testing various stack configurations [53], modelling different complexity of the systems [54], cells [55] and chemistry of materials and processes [56], building and demonstrating complete systems for portable, mobility and stationary applications. The group has experience in working on cell of various capacity and numerous applications ranging from micro fuel cells powering portable electronics [57], through back-up generators and transportation applications to techno-economic assessment of megawatt scale power and heat generation system. Recently, the group expanded its interest to include quantum chemistry (Density Functional Theory and Molecular Dynamics) modelling of fuel cell materials and electrode chemistries [58] and to perform life-cycle and techno-economic analysis of hydrogen technologies. The group hosts two laboratory spaces, one on NTU campus, while the other at the CleanTech Park with capabilities of producing the catalysts, cells, stacks, systems with Balance-of-Plant, algorithm and control from scratch and running sophisticated tests including Cycling Voltammetry, Polarization, Impedance Spectroscopy, material characteristics via XRD, SEM, TEM, among others. The research papers published by the group are highly cited making Prof SH Chan one of the world's most influential scientific minds 2014 according to Thomson Reuters [59]. Moreover, NTU organized the 1st World Hydrogen Technologies Convention in October 2005 that is continued until now with 6th run in Australia in 2015 [60]. The activities of the group for the past decade are summarised in figure below (see Fig. 1). At the National University of Singapore, fuel cell and hydrogen related research is conducted by groups in the Faculty of Engineering, Division of Environmental Science and Engineering where microbial fuel cells are developed for waste water treatment [61]. The Department of Materials Science and Engineering conducts research in using carbon based nano materials for application in hydrogen evolution reaction and in PEM fuel cells [62]. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering contributes towards development of carbon nanotubes based electrodes for microbial fuel cells [63]. The University also hosts projects in modelling of transport phenomena in PEM fuel cells [64]. Recently, partnering with the National Research Foundation Department of Mechanical Engineering and Engineering Science Programme developed and demonstrated a rooftop system that is producing hydrogen from sunlight and water [65]. The university plans to demonstrate sea-floating hydrogen generation systems. The University had previously cooperated with Agency for Science Technology and Research to develop a solid medium hydrogen storage system based on lithium nitride [66]. At Temasek Polytechnic, the Clean Energy Research Centre started a Fuel Cell Community and conducts research in fuel cell technologies [67]. The centre has full design and fabrication capabilities in fuel cell and power electronics. Founded in 2007, the centre has obtained S$7 million in funding from the National Research Foundation, Economic Development Board, Ministry of Energy, Singapore Maritime Institute and others. The projects include development of portable hydrogen fuel cell power pack that recently span-off into a start-up company and is in the midst of setting up a manufacturing line, and

Please cite this article in press as: Chan SH, et al., Fuel cell and hydrogen technologies research, development and demonstration activities in Singapore e An update, International Journal of Hydrogen Energy (2016), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2016.05.192

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Fig. 1 e Snapshot of the fuel cell group activities for the past decade.

other projects related to portable hydrogen generation and battery technologies. The Agency for Science Technology and Research (A*STAR) runs several research projects related to hydrogen technologies and fuel cells. Research on Fuel Cells at A*STAR was most active between 2006 and 2009 when a sizeable research programme, led by Prof SH Chan, was in partnership with RollsRoyce Fuel Cell Systems. The SERC Fuel Cell Programme involved four research institutes from A*STAR, i.e., SIMTech (Singapore Institute of Manufacturing Technology), IMRE (Institute of Materials Research and Engineering), IHPC (Institute of High Performance Computing) and ICES (Institute of Chemical Engineering Sciences). ICES has developed novel catalysts materials for PEM fuel cells as well as methods for hydrogen production from natural gas, purification and impurities for mobility applications. Another approach taken by the institute to make hydrogen vehicles a reality is to generate hydrogen on-board a vehicle via ethanol steam reforming while controlling for low content of CO [68]. The aim of the research was to develop a novel catalyst for the process. Collaborating with the IHPC, the researchers also investigated the mechanism of ethanol reforming on different catalyst materials [69]. IHPC conducted computational studies on fuel oxidation mechanism in solid oxide fuel cells using first

principle, density functional theory and microkinetic approaches [70]. The Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (IBN) worked on the development of cheap and efficient hybrid nanoparticle-based catalyst for PEM fuel cells [71]. The institute also explored composite metalsemiconductor nanoparticle as a potentially more effective catalyst for PEM fuel cells [72].

Singapore's collaborations with overseas research institutions Singapore government cultivated strong research collaborations with world class universities through setting up the Campus for Research Excellence and Technological Enterprise (CREATE), a partnership between local research institutions and globally renowned institutes like Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Technological University of Munich, Cambridge University, University of CaliforniaeBerkley and others [73]. Few of these collaborations are closely related to fuel cells and hydrogen technologies. In 2011, a collaboration was started between NTU, NUS and Peking University named Singapore e Peking University Research Centre (SPURc) aimed at developing low carbon technologies, in which one of the

Please cite this article in press as: Chan SH, et al., Fuel cell and hydrogen technologies research, development and demonstration activities in Singapore e An update, International Journal of Hydrogen Energy (2016), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2016.05.192

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projects is focused on co-electrolysis of CO2 and H2O to electrochemically produce syngas using Solid Oxide Electrolyser Cell [48]. Another initiative, that Singapore research institute participates in Solid Oxide Cells is the European Solid Oxide Cell and Stack Testing, Safety and Quality Assurance (SOCTESQA). This is a project between NTU and a host of European institutes from Germany, France, Denmark, Italy and Belgium. The aim of the project is to establish codes and standard for safety, testing and quality assurance of stacks and cells. The project started in 2014 and is still in progress [49]. In 2013, the Cambridge Centre for Carbon Reduction in Chemical Technology initiated between NTU and Cambridge University started a project on microbial fuel cells [50]. NTU also holds a number of informal collaborations based on students and staff exchange with Universities in USA, Europe and Asia that work on fuel cell and hydrogen technologies.

Private sector activity

Fig. 2 e Timeline of major Singapore Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Technology Activities.

One of the first fuel cell and hydrogen related companies in Singapore was GasHub Technology Pte Ltd formed in 2001 [74]. The company works towards commercialization of PEM fuel cells. It claims to have an automated manufacturing facility capable of manufacturing 75% of the required components to build the PEM systems. Besides PEM fuel cells, the company also developed Direct Methanol Fuel Cells and is conducting research on Solid Oxide Fuel Cells. The company recently partnered with US Proton Power focussing on hydrogen production from biomass. The company employs over 100 staff and is one of the fuel cell pioneers in Asia. Proton Power Pte Ltd, a Singapore registered subsidiary of US Proton Power is working with GasHub to build a demonstration plant in Singapore producing, among others, a biomass derived hydrogen. The demo plant is expected to commence operations in 2016.6 Another important player on the fuel cell and hydrogen technologies scene in Singapore is Horizon Fuel Cells Technologies founded in the late 2003 [75]. The company is now present in over 65 countries, operates 5 international subsidiaries and claims to offer the widest selection of commercial products below 1000 W. The company is working on commercializing 5 and 10 kW systems. The fuel cell systems developed by the company are used in numerous mobility applications, both on land and in the air. In 2009 partnering with London-based Riversimple, Horizon developed a fuel cell powered car with 6 kW power and a novel acceleration system based on supercapacitors allowing for such small base power. The car design is set to be available open source to keen inventors willing to improve the car locally and to promote hydrogen vehicles [76]. HES Energy Systems is one of daughter companies of Horizon that focuses on aerospace applications of fuel cells [77]. The company holds the record for the longest flight of fuel cell powered drone and is collaborating on its products with global institutes and companies like NASA, Boeing, Bluebird and NTU. Cleantech Research Funding 6

Based on private correspondence with Gas Hub Technology Pte Ltd.

Please cite this article in press as: Chan SH, et al., Fuel cell and hydrogen technologies research, development and demonstration activities in Singapore e An update, International Journal of Hydrogen Energy (2016), http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2016.05.192

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Fig. 3 e Annual hallmark new project count and cumulative initiative count reflecting experience in fuel cell and hydrogen technologies in Singapore.

initiative supported the collaboration between Israeli BlueBird and Horizon Energy Systems to develop a 10 h-endurance UAV for civilian purposes [78]. In 2015, HES announced a 700 Wh/kg solid fuel cell pack making an important step towards hydrogen powered vehicles without the need for complex catalytic reactors [79] The fuel cell pack has powered an Israeli aircraft system Skylark I-LE in 2011 tests [80]. A sizeable initiative was started in 2005 between consortium of local companies under the name EnerTek Singapore Pte Ltd and Rolls-Royce [81]. The collaboration involved investment of US$100e200 million to develop a manufacturing process of Rolls-Royce based fuel cell technology. The initiative had not achieved its goals and RollsRoyce resigned from fuel cell business selling its respective subsidiary to LG in 2012 [82]. The initiative was committed to commercialization of Solid Oxide Fuel Cells. Despite the setback with the Solid Oxide Cell technology, the commercial interest in fuel cells in Singapore is still thriving. In 2012, Electro Power Systems SA opened its strategic base in Singapore [83]. The move was dictated by the fast growing market for telecom back-up power and off-grid power generation in Asia. In 2015, the company in collaboration with NTU started a demo site in Singapore for its energy storage system based on alkaline electrolyser and hybrid battery and PEM fuel cell power generator [45]. Another fuel cells and hydrogen technologies firm, Intelligent Energy, set up office in Singapore in 2013 making the city its Asian supply chain hub [84]. A year later, the company received investment of US$ 63 million from Singapore's sovereign wealth fund, GIC [85]. In 2015, together with Accenture, OMNETRIC Group, DNV GL and Grass Energy, Intelligent Energy committed S$150 million in cumulative business expenditure on solar, fuel cells, smart grids and testing services in Singapore [86]. In the same year, company's CEO entered into agreement with two local companies, Manufacturing Integration Technology and Sunningdale to supply key components for fuel cells [87].

More recently, another international giant, DNV GL started working with local company Horizon Ferry (unrelated to Horizon Fuel Cells) in order to design a fuel cell powered ferry utilizing hydrogen generated from renewable energy sources [88]. Few other local companies are also active in niche application for fuel cells. Oneberry Technologies, offers hydrogen fuel cell powered CCTV systems based on German fuel cell technology [89]. Duralite Power Pte Ltd is a spin-off company from Temasek Polytechnic that, after receiving an international investment in 2015, is starting up a production line for its product Duralite 50, a portable power generator.7 H2SG is another local start-up company founded in 2013 and focussing on hydrogen production. Local electrical and gas grid operator, Singapore Power, is also interested in hydrogen and is exploring possibilities in using reformed natural gas for public transport and stationary applications. One of the biggest PEM fuel cell companies is in collaboration with NTU to develop a novel catalyst tolerable to chloride ions impurities for PEMFC applications. Similar project is run in collaboration with Gencell Ltd [90].

Conclusion Fuel cell and hydrogen technologies research, development and demonstration activities are well embedded into Singapore's landscape nowadays (see Figs.2e3). Collaboration with overseas and local companies on research development and demonstration is an important sign that the country has gained the recognition as one of the pioneers in the field. Technology, human capital, science and business capabilities have been developed and are supporting the further push towards more sustainable future. Institutionalization of R&D in fuel cell and hydrogen technologies at NTU, emergence of one of local companies as major international player and 7

Based on private correspondence with Duralite Power Pte Ltd.

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presence of other important market players in the sector contributes to authors' strong belief that hydrogen and fuel cells are indispensable part of a conscious and responsible society that Singapore aspires to be.

Acknowledgements This paper is an updated version of two previous articles published in 2004 and 2007 in Fuel Cells Bulletin and Fuel Cells, respectively, under the title Fuel Cell Research, Development and Demonstration Activities in Singapore. The authors would like to thank Chun Yu Ling for information on Duralite Power Pte Ltd, Sundar Pethaiah for information on GasHub Technology Pte Ltd and Proton Power Asia Pte Ltd and Collin Lim for information on Chemical Industries (Far East) Ltd. The authors would also like to take this occasion to thank the National Research Foundation, Economic Development Board, Ministry of Education, National Environment Agency, Nanyang Technological University and the Agency for Science, Technology and Research for the continuous support and funding of the research activities in Singapore and for entrusting majority of them to our group.

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