The unique UltraCell micro fuel cell power system, the XX25, will provide both
mission power and power for recharging batteries in a lightweight package. The
XX25, currently in prototype development, will cut by over a third the total carried
weight relative to batteries for 72-hour missions, and could be up to 80 percent
lighter for longer missions. The UltraCell power source also will significantly reduce
operational costs through the elimination of throwaway primary batteries and the
logistic burden of recharging batteries.

Like the XX90 fuel cell system originally designed as a prototype for the military by
UltraCell, the XX25 will use a revolutionary micro fuel reformer, combined with a
high-temperature fuel cell stack, to provide quiet, efficient power in an energy-dense
package. The Army selected the UltraCell system because it offers both maturity and
the best overall performance of any current fuel cell technologies.

The high-temperature fuel cell stack offers high power density and excellent heat
rejection at high ambient temperatures (e.g., desert conditions), and when combined
with the UltraCell micro reformer, provides low cost and high efficiency within a
relatively simple, low-maintenance design. The Army expects the XX25 to have up
to a 3:1 advantage over lithium primary batteries currently in use and up to a 4:1
advantage over currently available military rechargeable batteries, based on a 72-
hour mission at 20 watts. (Longer missions at higher power levels will show greater
improvements.)

UltraCell’s reformed methanol fuel cell (RMFC) system generates fuel-cell-ready
hydrogen from a highly concentrated methanol solution. The new portable power
system thus has the power density of a hydrogen fuel cell but uses the readily
available, low cost methanol fuel in a convenient, compact package. Weighing just
40 ounces, the power unit is about the size of a paperback novel. With the push of a
button, the user-friendly package self starts and feeds power as needed. The
system’s spent fuel canisters also can be instantly “hot swapped,” as needed, to
provide continuous power in any remote situation. For greater flexibility, the system
can even support batteries by serving as a portable recharging power supply.