The operating life of a molten carbonate fuel cell (mcfc) stack is severely limited by metal and electrolyte loss caused by corrosion of cathode-side bipolar plate current collector materials. in this project, conductive low cost stainless steels coated with lithium ferrite (lifeo2) will be… More

Carbon composites are a major component of phosphoric acid fuel cell (pafc) cost. these components are made by carbonizing resin/carbon composites. the heat treatment process for obtaining a defect-free part is lengthy (7 to 30days) and expensive. shorter heat treatment cycles can be designed if the… More

Recent component technology innovations will be applied to the design of rechargeable zinc-oxygen cells. the zinc-oxygen couple has long been recognized as having the potential for very high energy density; however, the system has been limited by problems with oxygen-electrode stability and… More

The objective of this project is examination of the feasibility of removing trace contaminants from hot coal-gas. after desulfurization by preliminary hot-gas cleaning, coal-gas must be further polished to remove a number of trace contaminants to levels of less than 1 ppm. such polishing by gas… More

THIS PROJECT IS AIMED AT IMPROVEMENT IN POWER DENSITY AND LOWERING OF THE CARBONATE FUEL CELL COSTS. THE PRESENT GENERATION OF CARBONATE FUEL CELLS IN QUITE ATTRACTIVE FOR BASELOAD UTILITYAPPLICATIONS BECAUSE OF THEIR HIGH EFFICIENCY, SUPERIOR ENVIRONMENTAL PERFORMANCE, AND COMPETITIVE COST OF… More

The attractiveness of carbonate fuel cell power plants can be significantly enchanced by extending the life of the fuel cell stack beyond the present design life of 40,000 hours. lossof sealing efficiency of the matrix during thermal cycling appears to impact the useful life ofthe carbonate fuel… More

Coal-based power systems can provide an effective means for meeting u.s. energy requirements. coal-derived and other hydrocarbon fuels can power highly efficient fuel cells in a wide variety of applications. to realize this objective, advances must be made to improve the performance and reduce the… More

The goal of this Phase I effort will be to develop long cycle life insoluble zinc electrodes which will be utilized in an ERC type bipolar nickel-zinc battery for hybrid and electric vehicles. The proposed investigation is based on ERC's hypothesis thatthe zinc electrode can be made to operate… More

This proposal is submitted in response to the Defense Technology Conversion Committee (DTCC's) solicitation entitled "Defense Technology Conversion, Reinvestment, and Transition Assistance". ERC, with the Center for Electro-chemical Systems and Hydrogen Research at Texas A&M University, proposes to… More

Recent component technology innovations will be combined with new materials available to significantly improve the energy density and cycle life of sealed rechargeable nickel-zinc prismatic batteries. The zinc electrode has long been recognized as having a high energy density, but the nickel-zinc… More

Carbonate fuel cell power plants offer the most efficient and environmentally superior option to generate electricity from natural gas, coal gas, and other hydrocarbon fuels. to realize the greatest commercial potential of these power plants, advances are desirable to improve the system performance… More

40558 November 12, 1996 Energy Research Corporation The carbonate fuel cell is widely recognized as a clean and efficient source of electric power for the future. Reduction of carbonate fuel cell cost is desired to further stimulate market interest. In… More

40559 November 12, 1996 Energy Research Corporation Fuel cell carbonate inventory is an important factor that controls the useful life of the first generation product. Loss of electrolyte through evaporation appears to impact the useful life of the… More

Operating temperatures for phosphoric acid fuel cells have been steadily increasing in the quest for higher efficiency. The temperature increase has been made possible by the use of more stable electrode catalyst and other fuel cell materials. This makes it possible to consider reforming methanol… More

98 Sol-gel Coatings as Corrosion Barriers for Carbonate Fuel Cell Components--Energy Research Corporation, 3 Great Pasture Road, Danbury, CT 06813-815; (203) 825-6006 Mr. Chao M. Huang, Principal Investigator Mr. Hans C. Maru, Business Official DOE Grant No. DE-FG02-97ER82402 Amount: … More

98 Sol-gel Coatings as Corrosion Barriers for Carbonate Fuel Cell Components--Energy Research Corporation, 3 Great Pasture Road, Danbury, CT 06813-815; (203) 825-6006 Mr. Chao M. Huang, Principal Investigator Mr. Hans C. Maru, Business Official DOE Grant No. DE-FG02-97ER82402 Amount: … More

60774 In order to be commercially competitive, Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) fuel cells have to meet an acceptable level of performance and cost targets for building applications. Most fuel cell performance losses occur at the cathode oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). Improvements in cathode… More

60774 In order to be commercially competitive, Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) fuel cells have to meet an acceptable level of performance and cost targets for building applications. Most fuel cell performance losses occur at the cathode oxygen reduction reaction (ORR). Improvements in cathode… More

"To be commercially competitive, PEM fuel cells have to be able to run on readily available fuels. Fuel reformers are practical, but fuel cell anode catalysts are severely poisoned by small quantities of carbon monoxide from the reformer. Despite mucheffort invested into increasing CO tolerance,… More

70558 The control and dynamic operation of Fuel Cell/Turbine Hybrid power plants will require a synergy of operation between subsystems, increased reliability of operation, and reduction in maintenance and downtime. Futhermore, the control strategy of the power plant will play a… More

"The SBIR Phase I project study will be on the development of stabilized nano-ZnO adsorbents for diesel desulfurization for fuel cell applications. Direct Fuel Cell Technology (DFC) is unique in that it can operate directly on hydrocarbon fuels without theuse of an external reformer to generate… More

72714S03-I The Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) fuel cell uses an electrochemical process to generate electricity with zero emissions and high efficiency. Current state-of-the-art PEM fuel cells, operating at ambient pressure, have a power density of 100milliWatt/cm2 at 0.8V. However, power density… More

70814B02-II Measurements of atmospheric concentrations of CO2 and CO from aircraft and from remote sites play a central role in observational strategies intended to quantify the sources and sinks of carbon and to control global warming from greenhouse gas emissions. Improved measurement techniques… More

To be commercially competitive, PEM fuel cells have to be able to run on readily available fuels. Fuel reformers are practical, but fuel cell anode catalysts are severely poisoned by small quantities of carbon monoxide from the reformer. Despite mucheffort invested into increasing CO tolerance,… More

FuelCell Energy, Inc. (FCE) is developing a marine fuel cell power plant for use on naval vessels. The Ship Service Fuel Cell power generator is based on internally reformed carbonate fuel cell technology utilizing naval logistic fuels.Logistic fuels require sulfur removal and conversion to a… More

This Small Business Innovation Research Phase I project is directed at developing novel high-temperature membranes/MEA for PEM fuel cell system for next generation vehicle (NGV) application. The overall objective is to operate PEM fuel cell at 120-150C to achieve high cell performance, improve CO… More

Solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC)/ gas turbine hybrid power systems (HPSs) have been recognized by federal agencies and other entities as having the potential to operate at unprecedented levels of performance for terrestrial applications (e.g., 70% power generation efficiencies with significantly… More

The SBIR Phase II will demonstrate scale-up, manufacturability and performance benefits of stabilized nano-ZnO adsorbents in bench scale testing of diesel desulfurization for fuel cell applications. Logistic fuels are a desirable fuel choice for military based fuel cell applications. However,… More

78150B The catalytic reforming of diesel fuel in Solid Oxide Fuel Cell (SOFC) systems must overcome a number of challenging issues: (1) the deactivation of the catalyst by sintering and sulfur poising; (2) the requirement for a large fuel processing system as a result of high space velocity… More

This project addresses the development of hybrid propulsion system technology for undersea weapons. The system will integrate a solid oxide fuel cell with a conventional engine or turbine. The proposed system is anticipated to have a superior range compared to conventional propulsion systems as… More

This project addresses the development of a solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) system for converting the chemical energy in JP-10 fuel to electric power. The system will be designed to support the deployment of next generation unmanned undersea vehicles (UUVs) and undersea weapons. The power plant will… More

With the depletion of fossil fuel reserves and a global requirement to develop a sustainable economy, hydrogen-based energy is becoming increasingly important. In the transportation sector, on-board storage of pure hydrogen may be required at pressures up to 10,000 psi, with compression of the… More

With the depletion of fossil fuel reserves, hydrogen-based energy is becoming increasingly important. However, the production, purification, and compression of hydrogen represent key technical challenges to the implementation of a hydrogen economy, especially in the transportation sector where… More

FuelCell Energy, Inc., in collaboration with the University of Minnesota, is proposing to develop an innovative fuel processor for person-portable fuel cell power system applications. The system will be designed to reform butanol into a hydrogen-rich stream suitable for use in a low-temperature… More

With the depletion of fossil fuel reserves, hydrogen-based energy is becoming increasingly significant. Production, purification and compression of hydrogen represent key technical challenges. Hydrogen is most commonly produced from steam methane reformers, by gasification or as a refining or… More

Efficient utilization of our nations fossil and renewable energy sources is a top priority to secure a sustainable energy future. Solid Oxide Fuel Cell (SOFC) based power systems represent an emerging technology that have the potential to produce clean electric power at nearly twice the efficiency… More

With the depletion of fossil fuel reserves, hydrogen-based energy is becoming increasingly significant. Production, purification and compression of hydrogen represent key technical challenges. Hydrogen is most commonly produced from steam methane reformers, by gasification or as a refining or… More