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Japanese field testing of H Power residential cogeneration system
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NEWS The DCH Enable fuel cell system will run on 100% natural gas, 100% hydrogen or any mix of the two. Running directly on pure hydrogen, the system can respond to demand loads in microseconds. Running on natural gas using an integrated reformer, the system responds as fast as or faster than other alternative energy back-up power supplies, including microturbines. DCH’s duel-fuel architecture is able to follow rapid increases in electrical load regardless of reformer response by making up the difference through hydrogen insertion. The new DCH patent, and several trade secrets surrounding the patent, are critical to the company’s commercialization plans. The improvement is an innovative passive water management system that increases both power density and operating stability. The company’s passive fuel cell technology is based on, and licensed from, technology developed at Los Alamos National Laboratory. Contact: DCH Technology Inc, 24832 Avenue Rockefeller, Valencia, CA 91355, USA. Tel: +1 661 775 8120, Fax: +1 661 257 9398, www.dcht.com Or contact: Con Edison Company of New York Inc, Engineering Services Department, 4 Irving Place, Room 1450-S, New York, NY 10003, USA. Tel: +1 212 460 1328, www.coned.com/engineering/dg.html
Japanese field testing of H Power residential cogeneration system Kamata Inc, a leading propane distributor in Japan serving some 800 000 customers, has installed and is field testing one of H Power’s 4.5 kWe Residential Cogeneration Units (RCUs) at its employee facility in Gotenba City, near Mount Fuji. This is the first field test of a propane-powered PEM system for an actual load in the Japanese residential market. The unit is being used to provide the electricity, heat and hot water requirements of a home owned by Kamata for the use of its employees. Kamata will field test this unit and provide all the test data to H Power to assist in completing the development of a commercial version of the RCU for Kamata’s customer base in Japan. ‘We are very impressed with H Power’s fuel cell stack and reformer technology, and the unit has operated in a continuous mode with no problems at all since being installed,’ commented Toshitaka Arikawa, general manager of Kamata’s Construction Division. ‘Customer feedback from field tests, such as the
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Fuel Cells Bulletin
Kamata unit, is essential to the development of next-generation designs for the commercial market in Japan,’ added H. Frank Gibbard, CEO of H Power. Contact: H Power Corporation, 1373 Broad Street, Clifton, NJ 07013, USA. Tel: +1 973 249 5444, Fax: +1 973 249 5450, www.hpower.com
Ohio fuel cell initiative A new US$100 million, three-year initiative aims to position Ohio as a national leader in the growing US fuel cell industry through investments in research, project demonstrations and job creation for Ohio citizens. The initiative – unveiled by Ohio governor Bob Taft – is an integral part of the Third Frontier Project, a 10-year, $1.6bn plan to create high-tech, high-paying jobs through the expansion of the state’s high-tech research capabilities and promotion of start-up companies. ‘Ohio is already well positioned to be a leader in the fuel cell industry,’ Taft said. ‘This new initiative will capitalize on our existing strengths and make us an integral force in the research, development and commercialization of this emerging technology.’ The initiative will focus on three core areas: •
• •
Expand the state’s research capabilities by building on the work at universities such as Case Western Reserve University, Ohio University and Ohio State University and technology leaders like Nasa Glenn and the Air Force Research Lab at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base; Participate in demonstration projects involving hydrogen infrastructure; and Invest in expanding the fuel cell industry in Ohio, to attract companies and the jobs they provide.
The governor’s announcement was made during a tour of Graftech, which provides natural graphite-based plates for fuel cells. The governor also visited McDermott Technology, which develops fuel processors for fuel cells, and NexTech Materials, which develops and produces value-added ceramic materials. The initiative calls for the Ohio Department of Development to allocate more than $100m through low-interest loans, tax-exempt bond financing and employee hiring and training credits, broken down into $75m for various financing projects; $25m for research, development and demonstration; and $3m for training.
Contact: Mark Rickel, Ohio Department of Development, PO Box 1001, Columbus, OH 432161001, USA. Tel: +1 614 466 8624, www.odod.state.oh.us or www.connectohio.com/3rdfrontier
Teledyne wins test station contract Maryland-based Teledyne Energy Systems has been awarded a contract to supply 32 Medusa™ RD test stations to a leading – but unnamed – PEM fuel cell component manufacturer. The systems supplied under the multi-year contract will expand the customer’s test capabilities and be used in the development of components used in the manufacture of PEM fuel cells. The Medusa RD system is a next-generation fuel cell test station that provides automatic testing of fuel cells in power ranges up to 1 kWe. The test station provides water, fuel and thermal management, as well as software and an electronic load designed specifically for fuel cell testing. The system control and safety features permit unattended 24/7 operation to allow customers to concentrate on fuel cell R&D rather than on their test hardware. The Medusa RD system is the result of an alliance between Teledyne Energy Systems and Scribner Associates, based in North Carolina. Teledyne is responsible for providing the fuel and oxidant management system, overall system integration, sales and support. Scribner Associates, a recognized leader in testing equipment for electrochemical research, supplies its FuelCell™ software and electronic loads. The integrated system requires less than 3 ft2 of bench space. Contact: Teledyne Energy Systems Inc, 10707 Gilroy Road, Hunt Valley, MD 21031-1311, USA. Tel: +1 410 771 8600, Fax: +1 410 771 8618, www.teledynees.com Or contact: Scribner Associates Inc, 150 E. Connecticut Avenue, Southern Pines, NC 28387, USA. Tel: +1 910 695 8884, Fax: +1 910 695 8886, www.scribner.com
First Direct FuelCell for Asian municipal wastewater treatment Tokyo-based Marubeni Corporation has announced the first siting of a Direct FuelCell® (DFC®) power plant for a municipal wastewater treatment facility in Japan, in the city of Fukuoka.
July 2002
16/07/2002
09:14
Page 4
NEWS The DCH Enable fuel cell system will run on 100% natural gas, 100% hydrogen or any mix of the two. Running directly on pure hydrogen, the system can respond to demand loads in microseconds. Running on natural gas using an integrated reformer, the system responds as fast as or faster than other alternative energy back-up power supplies, including microturbines. DCH’s duel-fuel architecture is able to follow rapid increases in electrical load regardless of reformer response by making up the difference through hydrogen insertion. The new DCH patent, and several trade secrets surrounding the patent, are critical to the company’s commercialization plans. The improvement is an innovative passive water management system that increases both power density and operating stability. The company’s passive fuel cell technology is based on, and licensed from, technology developed at Los Alamos National Laboratory. Contact: DCH Technology Inc, 24832 Avenue Rockefeller, Valencia, CA 91355, USA. Tel: +1 661 775 8120, Fax: +1 661 257 9398, www.dcht.com Or contact: Con Edison Company of New York Inc, Engineering Services Department, 4 Irving Place, Room 1450-S, New York, NY 10003, USA. Tel: +1 212 460 1328, www.coned.com/engineering/dg.html
Japanese field testing of H Power residential cogeneration system Kamata Inc, a leading propane distributor in Japan serving some 800 000 customers, has installed and is field testing one of H Power’s 4.5 kWe Residential Cogeneration Units (RCUs) at its employee facility in Gotenba City, near Mount Fuji. This is the first field test of a propane-powered PEM system for an actual load in the Japanese residential market. The unit is being used to provide the electricity, heat and hot water requirements of a home owned by Kamata for the use of its employees. Kamata will field test this unit and provide all the test data to H Power to assist in completing the development of a commercial version of the RCU for Kamata’s customer base in Japan. ‘We are very impressed with H Power’s fuel cell stack and reformer technology, and the unit has operated in a continuous mode with no problems at all since being installed,’ commented Toshitaka Arikawa, general manager of Kamata’s Construction Division. ‘Customer feedback from field tests, such as the
4
Fuel Cells Bulletin
Kamata unit, is essential to the development of next-generation designs for the commercial market in Japan,’ added H. Frank Gibbard, CEO of H Power. Contact: H Power Corporation, 1373 Broad Street, Clifton, NJ 07013, USA. Tel: +1 973 249 5444, Fax: +1 973 249 5450, www.hpower.com
Ohio fuel cell initiative A new US$100 million, three-year initiative aims to position Ohio as a national leader in the growing US fuel cell industry through investments in research, project demonstrations and job creation for Ohio citizens. The initiative – unveiled by Ohio governor Bob Taft – is an integral part of the Third Frontier Project, a 10-year, $1.6bn plan to create high-tech, high-paying jobs through the expansion of the state’s high-tech research capabilities and promotion of start-up companies. ‘Ohio is already well positioned to be a leader in the fuel cell industry,’ Taft said. ‘This new initiative will capitalize on our existing strengths and make us an integral force in the research, development and commercialization of this emerging technology.’ The initiative will focus on three core areas: •
• •
Expand the state’s research capabilities by building on the work at universities such as Case Western Reserve University, Ohio University and Ohio State University and technology leaders like Nasa Glenn and the Air Force Research Lab at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base; Participate in demonstration projects involving hydrogen infrastructure; and Invest in expanding the fuel cell industry in Ohio, to attract companies and the jobs they provide.
The governor’s announcement was made during a tour of Graftech, which provides natural graphite-based plates for fuel cells. The governor also visited McDermott Technology, which develops fuel processors for fuel cells, and NexTech Materials, which develops and produces value-added ceramic materials. The initiative calls for the Ohio Department of Development to allocate more than $100m through low-interest loans, tax-exempt bond financing and employee hiring and training credits, broken down into $75m for various financing projects; $25m for research, development and demonstration; and $3m for training.
Contact: Mark Rickel, Ohio Department of Development, PO Box 1001, Columbus, OH 432161001, USA. Tel: +1 614 466 8624, www.odod.state.oh.us or www.connectohio.com/3rdfrontier
Teledyne wins test station contract Maryland-based Teledyne Energy Systems has been awarded a contract to supply 32 Medusa™ RD test stations to a leading – but unnamed – PEM fuel cell component manufacturer. The systems supplied under the multi-year contract will expand the customer’s test capabilities and be used in the development of components used in the manufacture of PEM fuel cells. The Medusa RD system is a next-generation fuel cell test station that provides automatic testing of fuel cells in power ranges up to 1 kWe. The test station provides water, fuel and thermal management, as well as software and an electronic load designed specifically for fuel cell testing. The system control and safety features permit unattended 24/7 operation to allow customers to concentrate on fuel cell R&D rather than on their test hardware. The Medusa RD system is the result of an alliance between Teledyne Energy Systems and Scribner Associates, based in North Carolina. Teledyne is responsible for providing the fuel and oxidant management system, overall system integration, sales and support. Scribner Associates, a recognized leader in testing equipment for electrochemical research, supplies its FuelCell™ software and electronic loads. The integrated system requires less than 3 ft2 of bench space. Contact: Teledyne Energy Systems Inc, 10707 Gilroy Road, Hunt Valley, MD 21031-1311, USA. Tel: +1 410 771 8600, Fax: +1 410 771 8618, www.teledynees.com Or contact: Scribner Associates Inc, 150 E. Connecticut Avenue, Southern Pines, NC 28387, USA. Tel: +1 910 695 8884, Fax: +1 910 695 8886, www.scribner.com
First Direct FuelCell for Asian municipal wastewater treatment Tokyo-based Marubeni Corporation has announced the first siting of a Direct FuelCell® (DFC®) power plant for a municipal wastewater treatment facility in Japan, in the city of Fukuoka.
July 2002