London taxis, scooter fleet powered by UK’s first hydrogen station network

31 October 2011

A new project in London will see an additional hydrogen fueling station to support 15 fuel cell powered black cabs (taxis) and five fuel cell Suzuki Bergmann scooters carrying passengers around the city, in time for the London 2012 Summer Olympics and Paralympics.

UD snags renowned fuel-cell researcher

Officials hope professor boosts school — and state’s economy

By JONATHAN STARKEY
The News Journal

The University of Delaware has landed a potential star professor — one who burnishes the college’s engineering offerings and could help build the state’s economy.

Yushan Yan, a renowned fuel-cell researcher, is a new engineering professor at the school, arriving this summer with an entourage of nine early-career scientists and seven doctoral candidates.

At a cost of $1.9 million, the Delaware Technology Park has built the crew 6,500 square feet of laboratory and office space in Newark, where it will work alongside small startups and established businesses.

University and state officials hope Yan’s labs will be a source of market-ready innovation in coming years.

Yan, who has already licensed technology to a pair of commercial startups, hopes to market technology that could efficiently convert hydrogen from the sun’s rays into power for homes and cars. The technology could also lead to efficient batteries to store solar or wind power — and, importantly, new jobs.

“I really want to commercialize technology that can improve society,” Yan says.

Plug Power of Latham will invest $9.4 million to purchase supplies from Vancouver-based Ballard Power Systems as demand for hydrogen-powered forklifts grows.

Andy Marsh, Plug Power’s chief executive officer, said his company will purchase 3,250 energy-producing devices known as fuel cell stacks, about six times as many as they bought just one year ago.

Marsh also plans to hire 50 manufacturing employees next year as the company increases sales to Sysco, Coca-Cola, BMW and FedEx Freight that have purchased fuel cell powered forklifts for their distribution and manufacturing centers.

Plug Power is part of a growing number of Albany-area businesses that are investing heavily in supplies and new employees as they look to emerge from the bitter recession.

VANCOUVER, CANADA– Ballard Power Systems (TSX: BLD) (NASDAQ: BLDP) announced that Dantherm Power, its backup power systems company, will supply a 150 kilowatt (kW) fuel cell generator and associated engineering services to Anglo American Platinum Limited (www.angloamericanplatinum.com), the world’s largest primary producer of platinum and a member of the Anglo American plc Group.

The fuel cell generator, based on Dantherm Power’s DBX5000 backup power fuel cell system, utilizes Ballard fuel cell stacks and will be delivered in the current quarter for deployment at one of Anglo American Platinum’s mining operations in South Africa.

“This deployment is an opportunity to demonstrate the readiness and benefits of fuel cell power systems in new vertical market applications,” said John Sheridan, Ballard’s President and CEO. “Anglo American operations will gain first-hand experience regarding the ability for a fuel cell generator to provide clean and reliable power on a relatively large scale at a mining site.”

The fuel cell system will be powered by hydrogen generated in South Africa and will provide clean, cost-effective electricity.

Backup power solutions based on fuel cell technology deliver a number of advantages over conventional batteries and diesel generators, including: higher reliability across a wide range of operating conditions; lower maintenance costs; longer operating life; reduced size, weight and installation footprint. Fuel cell backup power systems also reduce noise and air emissions and do not present the disposal issues associated with lead acid batteries at the end of life.

About Ballard Power Systems
Ballard Power Systems (TSX: BLD) (NASDAQ: BLDP) provides clean energy fuel cell products enabling optimized power systems for a range of applications. Products are based on proprietary esencia™ technology, ensuring incomparable performance, durability and versatility. To learn more about Ballard, please visit www.ballard.com.

New results on biological hydrogen conversion published in Nature by UniCat researcher Molecular hydrogen is discussed as promising renewable energy source and attractive alternative to fossil fuels. Many microorganisms exploit the beneficial properties of hydrogen already since more than two billion years. They accommodate dedicated enzymes that either split or evolve molecular hydrogen according to the specific metabolic requirements of the cell.

These hydrogen-converting biocatalysts are called hydrogenases and occur in nature in different varieties. Most hydrogenases become inactivated or even destroyed in the presence of molecular oxygen. This intrinsic property represents a serious problem regarding biotechnological application. However, some hydrogenases maintain their catalytic activity in the presence of oxygen.

An interdisciplinary team of scientists headed by the UniCat researchers Oliver Lenz and Bärbel Friedrich from Humboldt-Universitaet zu Berlin and Patrick Scheerer and Christian Spahn from Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin now succeeded in solving the first X-ray crystal structure of a hydro-genase that produces hydrogen even at atmospheric oxygen concentration.

The X-ray crystal structure allows detailed insights into the three-dimensional architecture of the enzyme and its metal cofactors which participate in catalysis. The results have been published in Nature online (http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/nature10505). Interestingly, the hydrogenase contains a novel iron-sulfur center which acts as an electronic switch in the course of detoxification of detrimental oxygen. With this discovery, the scientists could substantiate the hypothesis that this particular group of hydro-genases is able to convert both, hydrogen and oxygen in a catalytic manner. During catalysis, oxygen becomes reduced to harmless water.

The new results are particularly relevant for fundamental research. More-over, also the biotechnological application of hydrogenases, e.g. solar-driven hydrogen production by photosynthetic microorganisms and enzyme-driven biological fuel cells, may profit from the new findings. Furthermore, it is anticipated that the novel iron-sulfur center will inspire chemists to design model compounds with improved catalytic properties.

UniCat
Unifying Concepts in Catalysis (UniCat) is the Cluster of Excellence within the framework of the German Initiative for Excellence researching the economically important field of catalysis. More than 250 chemists, physicists, biologists and engineers from four universities and two Max Planck research institutes from Berlin and Potsdam are involved in this interdisciplinary research network. The Cluster is hosted by the Technische Universität Berlin. The subject areas covered range from the chemical conversion of natural and biogas, the activation of carbon dioxide and the creation of hydrogen from light and water, to the synthesis of active ingredients using enzymes.

Published in: Fritsch, J., P. Scheerer, S. Frielingsdorf, S. Kroschinsky, B. Friedrich, O. Lenz & C. M. Spahn. The crystal structure of an oxygen-tolerant hydrogenase uncovers a novel iron-sulphur centre. Nature doi: 10.1038/nature10505 (2011)

For further information, please contact:

Dr. Oliver Lenz, Institut für Biologie / Mikrobiologie der Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Germany, Phone: +49 (0) 30/2093 8173, E-mail: oliver.lenz@cms.hu-berlin.de

Loughborough, UK, -– Intelligent Energy, the global clean power systems company, has today announced the appointment of Joe O’Sullivan to the role of Chief Operating Officer. O’Sullivan most recently served as VP Operations, Sales and Marketing of Microvision, a leading provider of display and imaging products for mobile applications. Prior to this, he spent 15 years at Apple Computer Inc., serving in various leadership functions, which included, while Vice President of Operations, directing the product management and introduction of the iMac computer.

O’Sullivan brings over three decades of management experience in the high technology industry, primarily in the fields of reengineering, architecting and implementing global supply chain, sales and marketing activities. At Apple, he oversaw development of some of the first innovative supplier hubs in the high technology industry and established and optimised global supply chain operations, efficiency initiatives and procurement strategies.

“I am delighted to be joining Intelligent Energy – a rapidly developing global leader in clean power systems,” said O’Sullivan. “I have been tracking the success of Intelligent Energy for some time and I look forward to the exciting opportunities ahead as the company continues to scale-up its operations and commercialise its technologies.”

Joe O’Sullivan, newly appointed COO at Intelligent Energy

O’Sullivan has also served as COO for InFocus, a global leader in the development of DLP and LCD projectors, where he led Operations, Customer Service, Research & Development and Marketing to build a world class operations function from a base in Singapore, and served as an operations and business development consultant with Banta Global Turnkey Ltd.

“We are all energized by Joe’s arrival at Intelligent Energy. He has a wealth of experience and robust track record delivering innovative products to mass markets using best in class low working capital operations,” explained Dr Henri Winand, CEO, Intelligent Energy. “Joe’s arrival is very timely: his operational leadership experience at global organisations such as Apple will be focused on the execution of our accelerated growth and commercialisation plans.”

About Intelligent Energy
Intelligent Energy is a global clean power systems company, with a range of leading hydrogen fuel cell technologies. The company partners with leading global companies in the transportation, aerospace, distributed generation, backup and portable power markets. Current partners and customers include Scottish & Southern Energy plc and The Suzuki Motor Corporation, with whom Intelligent Energy built the Burgman Fuel Cell Scooter, the first fuel cell vehicle to achieve European Whole Vehicle Type Approval. The Company’s successes include the world’s first purpose built fuel cell motorbike and supplying the fuel cell to Boeing which powered the world’s first manned fuel cell aircraft.

Crystallography reveals novel cluster behind oxygen tolerance, opening up new possibilities for fuel-cell applications

Carmen Drahl

Courtesy of Oliver Lenz

This [4Fe-3S] cluster is coordinated to six cysteine residues (white); Fe = orange, S = yellow.

Chemical & Engineering News

ISSN 0009-2347

Copyright © 2011 American Chemical Society

BOULDER, Colo.–In recent years, the market for stationary fuel cells has grown rapidly, increasing by 60%, to just over 9,000 units in 2010 alone. That expansion is expected to continue, as applications in combined heat and power (CHP) for both residential and commercial buildings, backup and primary power for mobile base stations, and electricity generators (again for both commercial and residential use) gain increasing traction and generate significant revenue streams. According to a recent report from Pike Research, the annual total market value of the worldwide stationary fuel cell sector will reach $9.5 billion by 2017, surpassing 1.2 million units shipped annually. Driving that growth will be shipments of fuel cells for the residential market, which the cleantech market intelligence forecasts will more than double in each of the next six years.

The use of stationary fuel cells for mobile base stations for the wireless communications industry is also expected to grow rapidly, reaching 422,000 units by 2017.

“Stationary fuel cells have the potential to slow the rate at which energy demands for the home increase and to increase energy efficiency,” says research director Kerry-Ann Adamson. “Particularly as the role of the home shifts from a family sanctuary to also being the hub of a personal communications network, vendors see great potential for fuel cells to help moderate and manage the energy required to power the myriad applications that 21^st century residents desire.”

Early centers of stationary fuel cell adoption include Japan, Germany, and Denmark, particularly for residential CHP applications, while South Korea, the United States, and the United Kingdom are poised to be fast followers in this key application area. In Japan, the Ene-Farm program, which aims to promote widespread adoption of residential CHP modules, had already resulted in the shipment of 6,000 units by 2009.

While such growth in the midst of a global recession is impressive, the industry faces market and technology barriers. Raising the profile of stationary fuel cells is a key priority for the industry, as are standardizing the technology and reducing the capital expense of manufacturing and purchasing the units. While there are some 60-plus companies with active development programs, only a handful of these are shipping units that could be considered commercial. In 2010, Pike Research estimates, just five companies represented more than three-quarters of all unit shipments in the global market.

Pike Research’s report, “Stationary Fuel Cells”, provides an in-depth analysis of the development of the stationary fuel cell sector since 2008, along with an examination of the market outlook through 2017. The study covers key business and technology issues, as well as an assessment of key industry players based on extensive primary research. Market forecasts are included for unit shipments, installed capacity, and revenue, segmented by world region and application area. An Executive Summary of the report is available for free download on the firm’s website.

Pike Research is a market research and consulting firm that provides in-depth analysis of global clean technology markets. The company’s research methodology combines supply-side industry analysis, end-user primary research and demand assessment, and deep examination of technology trends to provide a comprehensive view of the Smart Energy, Smart Grid, Smart Transportation, Smart Industry, and Smart Buildings sectors. For more information, visit www.pikeresearch.com or call +1.303.997.7609.

LATHAM, N.Y. — Plug Power Inc. (Nasdaq:PLUG), a leader in providing clean, reliable energy products, placed a large production order for Air Squared Mfg., Inc. scroll compressors to be used in the GenDrive^® product suite. Air Squared has supplied compressors to Plug Power since 2006. Their compressors will be operational in over 2,000 GenDrive systems deployed with material handling customers across North America by years end. Plug Power was the first fuel cell company to partner with the Broomfield, CO-based company.

Air Squared scroll compressors are used to direct air to the GenDrive fuel cell stack. Scroll compressors are inherently more efficient and reliable, consisting of only two primary moving parts, allowing for a small and compact design. They are also oil-free, meeting the requirements set by Plug Power for clean compressed air without impurities. Air Squared is also using scroll technology to develop efficient hydrogen recirculation pumps for fuel cell applications.

“As one of our major customers, Plug Power has played a large part in our rapid growth over the last two years,” said Robert Shaffer, President of Air Squared. “Plug Power has helped provide the base business we needed to bring machining in-house, resulting in large-scale price reductions and a vast improvement in quality.”

“Air Squared is a key supplier with unique capabilities and we are pleased to extend this long term relationship,” said Andy Marsh, CEO at Plug Power.

About Plug Power Inc.

The architects of modern fuel cell technology, Plug Power revolutionized the industry with cost-effective power solutions that increase productivity, lower operating costs and reduce carbon footprints. Long-standing relationships with industry leaders forged the path for Plug Power’s key accounts, including Wegmans, Whole Foods, and FedEx Freight.  With more than 1,200 GenDrive units shipped to material handling customers, accumulating over 5 million hours of runtime, Plug Power manufactures tomorrow’s incumbent power solutions today. Additional information about Plug Power is available at www.plugpower.com.

UT Dallas Graduate Student to Present Recently Published Findings at Upcoming Symposium

Imagine your car running on an abundant, environmentally friendly fuel generated from the surrounding atmosphere. Sounds like science fiction, but UT Dallas researchers recently published a paper in the journal Nature Materials detailing a breakthrough in understanding how such a fuel – in this case, hydrogen – can be stored in metals.

UT Dallas researchers Irinder Chopra (left) and Jean-Francois Veyan recently published an article in the journal Nature Materials about a breakthrough finding in how to store  hydrogen in metals.

“Hydrogen, which is in abundance all around us, has shown a lot of promise as an alternative fuel source in recent years,” said UT Dallas graduate student Irinder Singh Chopra. “Moreover, it’s environmentally friendly as it gives off only water after combustion.”

Chopra is part of a collaborative effort among UT Dallas, Washington State University and Brookhaven National Laboratory to find ways to store  hydrogen for use as an alternative fuel.

Hydrogen has potential for use as an everyday fuel, but the problem of safely storing this highly flammable, colorless gas is a technological hurdle that has kept it from being a viable option.

“We investigated a certain class of materials called complex metal hydrides (aluminum-based hydrides) in the hope of finding cheaper and more effective means of activating hydrogen,” Chopra said.

The research team had to design and build ultra-high vacuum equipment to conduct the experiments.

“Our research into an aluminum-based catalyst turned out to be much more useful than just designing  good storage materials,” he said.  “It has also provided very encouraging results into the possible use of this system as a very cheap and effective alternative to the materials currently used for fuel cells.”

This is the first step in producing many important industrial chemicals that have so far required expensive noble-metal catalysts and thermal activation. Essentially, the process can easily break apart molecular hydrogen and capture the individual atoms, potentially leading to a robust and affordable fuel storage system or a cheap catalyst for important industrial reactions.

Chopra discovered that the key to unlocking aluminum’s potential is to impregnate its surface with trace amounts of titanium that can catalyze the separation of molecular hydrogen.

“It has long been theoretically predicted that titanium-doped aluminum can be used as an effective catalyst,” Chopra said. “We discovered, however, that a specific arrangement of titanium atoms was critical and made it possible to produce atomic hydrogen on aluminum surfaces at remarkably low temperatures.”

For use as a fuel-storage device, aluminum could be made to release its store of hydrogen by raising its temperature slightly. This system presents a method for storing and releasing hydrogen at lower temperatures than what is currently available, which is critical for safe day-to-day applications.

To perform these experiments, Dr. Jean-Francois Veyan, a research scientist in Chabal’s lab, greatly assisted Chopra in the design and construction of a sophisticated ultra-high vacuum equipment.

“A critical aspect of the work was the ability to clean single crystal aluminum samples without damaging the arrangement of the surface atoms,” Veyan said. “Experience gathered from my earlier PhD work on aluminum was very important to help prepare these novel Ti-doped surfaces.”

Dr. Yves Chabal, Texas Instruments Distinguished University Chair in Nanoelectronics and head of the University’s Department of Materials Science and Engineering, who oversaw the research program, praised the team’s achievements.

“This is a good example of the kind of collaborative research that can lead to new advances in the field,” Chabal said, “and how painstaking work started five years ago can bring unexpected and exciting results.”

UT Dallas researchers collaborated on the project with Dr. Santanu Chaudhuri, a theoretical senior scientist at Washington State University (funded by the Office of Naval Research). The UT Dallas researchers performed these experiments in Chabal’s Laboratory for Surface and Nanostructure Modification, fully supported by the Materials Sciences and Engineering Division of the office of Basic Energy Sciences, US Department of Energy (grant # DE-AC02-98CH10886).

Company Recognized for Creating Technology and Business Success in Storage/Smart Grid Category

MISSISSAUGA, Ontario– Hydrogenics Corporation (Nasdaq:HYGS) (TSX:HYG), a leading developer and manufacturer of hydrogen generation and fuel cell products, has announced that it has been chosen by the Global Cleantech Cluster Association (www.globalcleantech.org) as a 2011 Later Stage Award Top 30 semi-finalist. Inclusion in the GCCA Global Top 30 reflects the strong business and market position of the company in the Storage/Smart Grid category, and signifies that its innovative approaches and technologies are gaining a foothold in the new global green economy.

Hydrogenics was nominated for the GCCA Later Stage Award by Toronto’s MaRS Discovery District (www.marsdd.com) in May 2011 for the company’s development of hydrogen solutions for scalable storage of intermittent renewable energy. Various criteria including the business model, market position, profitability and potential for creating and capturing market share qualifies a company to be a GCCA Later Stage Award 2011 Global Top 30 Finalist.

“Narrowing down 185 nominations from cleantech clusters all over the world down to 30 was a very competitive process,” says Ben Taube, Chairman of the GCCA. “These Top 30 Finalists are the rising stars of the world’s clean technology sector.”

“These companies, with their customers and revenue, are building significant green collar economies in the regions where they operate,” said Shawn Lesser Co-Founder of the GCCA. “For the health of the planet, both economically and environmentally, we are committed to spotlighting these game-changing companies on the world stage.”

The introduction of renewable solar or wind energy in a power system results in fluctuations that destabilize the grid. Generation and storage of hydrogen from Hydrogenics’ water electrolysis technology, powered by excess renewable energy, is capable of balancing these fluctuations and allowing energy to be stored for long periods of time. When optimized in such a way, electrical grids can supply end-users with reliable, dispatchable energy from zero-emission energy sources. This is a patented Hydrogenics application of Hydrogen technology.

“Energy storage in the form of hydrogen that has been generated using excess energy from wind and solar sources is the highest capacity approach to grid scale energy storage. The hydrogen solution surpasses Compressed Air Energy Storage (CAES) and pumped hydro solutions in versatility as it can be placed anywhere,” said Daryl Wilson, President and CEO of Hydrogenics. “We are pleased that GCCA established an award category for this critical area of clean energy technology and even more pleased that Hydrogenics has been selected as one of three top finalists for this category from around the world.”

The GCCA Later Stage Award Global Top 30 Finalists were selected out of the 4000 companies represented by the GCCA’s 30 member clusters, ranging from North America and Europe to Asia. Each cluster conducted internal evaluations to nominate up to 10 companies in 10 categories, including solar, wind, energy storage, green buildings, water and more. In total, these member clusters nominated 185 companies for the 2011 Later Stage Award. The Top 30 finalists were screened for investment grade through the Keystone Method™, a data-driven business assessment and venture development tool developed by GCCA Head Judge Dr. Peter Adriaens at The University of Michigan, and CleanTech Acceleration Partners.

Hydrogenics and the other 2011 Global Top 30 companies will be honored at the GCCA’s Later Stage Award Dinner held in conjunction with the Dublin Cleantech Forum on November 14th, 2011.

The 2011 Later Stage Award is sponsored by Grant Thornton International. A full list of all the GCCA Later Stage Award 2011 Global Top 30 Finalists can be found at the GCCA website at: www.globalcleantech.org/awards/2011-global-top-30.

About Hydrogenics

Hydrogenics Corporation (www.hydrogenics.com) is a globally recognized developer and provider of hydrogen generation and fuel cell products and services, serving the growing industrial and clean energy markets of today and tomorrow. Based in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, Hydrogenics has operations in North America and Europe.

About the Global Cleantech Cluster Association

The Global Cleantech Cluster Association creates conduits for companies to harness the tremendous benefits of international cleantech cluster collaboration in an efficient, affordable, and structured way.  Global Cleantech provides a gateway for established and emerging cleantech companies to gain exposure to potential investors, new markets, influential networks, innovative technologies and best practices.  GCCA was founded by swisscleantech, the Finnish Cleantech Cluster, and Watershed Capital Group. The GCCA Later Stage Award is sponsored by Grant Thornton International. For more information about Global Cleantech, please visit www.globalcleantech.org.

Baldor Speciality Foods is to install fifty Oorja Protonics OorjaPac DMFC systems to its fleet of battery operated materials handling equipment at its Bronx, New York facility. The OorjaPac units run on widely available and cheap methanol fuel and require minimal infrastructure, making retrofits at facilities an attractive proposition. Installations of the units will begin early next year with the fleet to be fully operational by mid-2012.

President of Baldor Speciality Foods Michael T. Muzyk comments, “Baldor Foods is excited to be working with Oorja to help us achieve our corporate sustainability goals. We are very impressed by the technology, as it is environmentally friendly and will also help us save cost and improve productivity.  We are confident that Baldor’s leadership as an adopter of innovative technology will attract like-industry peers in the Hunts Point industrial park such as the produce, fish and meat markets and other material handling industries that are looking to help the environment while reducing their energy costs.”

• Hydrogen produced from processing of municipal solid waste
• Fuel cell system generates power locally, using hydrogen as fuel

VANCOUVER–Ballard Power Systems (TSX: BLD) (NASDAQ: BLDP) announced that the fuel cell system supplied to GS Platech (www.gsplatech.co.kr) and previously announced in Q1 2011 for demonstration of waste-to-energy power generation, is now operating successfully to provide power to the local South Korean electricity grid.

GS Platech’s pilot plant in Cheongsong, South Korea uses plasma gasification technology to treat organic solid waste and is capable of producing sufficient high purity hydrogen to generate 50 kilowatts (50kW) of clean, zero-emission power. The power system fuelled by this hydrogen and incorporating Ballard fuel cell stacks was supplied by Dantherm Power, Ballard’s backup power systems company.

“This is the first ever demonstration of a waste-to-energy system incorporating both of these technologies,” said Jesper Themsen, Managing Director and CEO of Dantherm Power. “The successful operation of the system is a significant milestone in the development of waste-to-energy solutions and speaks to our strong partnership with GS Platech.”

GS Platech intends to further promote this solution to new customers worldwide and, to this end, recently hosted tours of the demonstration site in conjunction with the International Solid Waste Association World Congress 2011 (www.iswa2011.org). Attendees learned of the potential for this waste-to-energy system to address two key environmental issues in tandem: environmentally responsible waste treatment; and clean power production.

This project was undertaken as a national research project of the Korean Ministry of Knowledge and Economy with the financial support of the Government of Canada provided through the Department of the Environment, under the framework of the Asia-Pacific Partnership on Clean Development and Climate (www.asiapacificpartnership.org).

About Ballard Power Systems
Ballard Power Systems (TSX: BLD) (NASDAQ: BLDP) provides clean energy fuel cell products enabling optimized power systems for a range of applications. Products are based on proprietary esencia™ technology, ensuring incomparable performance, durability and versatility. To learn more about Ballard, please visit www.ballard.com.

Bozcaada Hydrogen Energy Installation

An experimental renewables-hydrogen energy installation implemented by UNIDO-ICHET was inaugurated on 7 October 2011 on the Aegean island of Bozcaada in the presence of local authorities and members of the press. The first project of its kind in Turkey, the Bozcaada Hydrogen Island project was installed in Bozcaada Governor’s building by the International Centre for Hydrogen Energy Technologies (ICHET), a United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) project supported by the Turkish Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources (MENR).

Inauguration of Bozcaada Hydrogen Installation

The opening ceremony was attended by representatives of the MENR, ICHET, UNIDO, Bozcaada Governor and Bozcaada Municipality.
“Generating energy from hydrogen will be a model for many other cities to find alternative and clean energy models,” ICHET Managing Director Mustafa Hatipoğlu said at the opening ceremony.
The Bozcaada Hydrogen Island project is a facility aimed at studying how hydrogen and renewable energies can be integrated in standalone applications for the powering of island communities. This experimental power plant produces electricity thanks to a 20 kW solar photovoltaic array and stores an equivalent amount of energy as hydrogen via a 50 kW electrolyzer. At times of grid failure or peak demand, the stored hydrogen can be converted back to electricity using a 20 kW fuel cell and 35 kW hydrogen engine, allowing uninterrupted electricity supply to the equivalent of 20 households for up to 24╩hours. The system is to be completed in 2012 by a 30 kW set of wind turbines.

The Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) sponsored an assessment of how fuel cells can help meet DoD’s power needs in the near term, i.e., the next 5 years. The assessment is intended to assist DoD in establishing priorities and taking actions that reflect the potential energy, environmental, and economic benefits of fuel cells; the current fuel cell readiness to support DoD missions; and DoD’s role as an early adopter of technology. The value proposition of four applications was analyzed, and recommendations for DoD action were developed. This report provides an overview of the assessment.

A copy of the report can be downloaded.

North American Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Energy Associations Applaud Groundbreaking Study

First Demonstration System now ready for installation at Solvay Interox Ltd

ACAL Energy has achieved key milestones in the development of its FlowCath® platinum-free liquid cathode fuel cell technology. The Company has completed the build of its first field test system, producing gross power of 3kW. At the same time the company has also achieved a new record peak performance power density of nearly 900 mW/cm2, which is a substantial improvement over the previously announced peak power record of around 600 mW/cm2.

ACAL Energy has built its first FlowCath®demonstration unit, and will install the unit next month at Solvay Interox’s chemical plant at Warrington, Cheshire. There, it will provide continuous electrical power to a remote environmental monitoring system within the manufacturing facility. The stack and regenerator sub-systems in the demonstration unit are together capable of producing over 3kW of gross electrical power and represent a significant scale-up from the previous generation test unit which produced about 1kW of gross power.

The demonstration system is part of a collaborative project that ACAL Energy is leading, co-funded by the Technology Strategy Board. The project is seen as a major step towards commercialisation for this innovative technology, and is supported by ACAL Energy’s partners: Solvay, Johnson Matthey Fuel Cells, UPS Systems, the Centre for Process Innovation, the University of Southampton and the Manufacturing Engineering Centre at Cardiff University.

The new record peak power output from a single cell of nearly 900 mW/cm2 was achieved under the PEM Challenge grant project sponsored by the Carbon Trust, which is funding accelerated development of ACAL Energy’s technology for automotive applications. The latest performance results give the company even greater confidence in the ability of its technology to meet the efficiency requirements of nearly all stationary and automotive applications, while delivering a substantially higher level of durability than conventional fuel cells.

“With the successful implementation of our FlowCath® technology into a full multi-kilowatt system, ACAL Energy has passed a significant milestone in our business plan. We have shown that this new low cost and durable fuel cell technology can be packaged and operated in a form suitable for nearly all stationary power applications”, said Dr SB Cha, CEO of ACAL Energy. “To have broken new performance records at the same time is a very promising sign that we can also make this technology suitable for automotive applications. It is also a tribute to the hard work and ground-breaking innovation of the entire ACAL Energy team.”

Toyota will be out in force in this year’s RAC Future Car Challenge with a trio of models demonstrating the breadth of its industry-leading technologies for developing cleaner, sustainable transport.

The annual green motoring competition, taking place on 5 November, will see the Prius Plug-in Hybrid, which will make its market debut next year joined on a 64-mile test route from Brighton to London by Toyota’s FCHV-adv, a zero-emissions vehicle which showcases Toyota’s latest advances in harnessing hydrogen power. Also taking part will be the Auris full hybrid hatchback – Britain’s first home-built hybrid car.

At the wheel will be some of the country’s most influential motoring journalists, together with Don Wales, the UK electric land speed record holder.

Prius Plug-in Hybrid delivers the “best of both worlds” with a powertrain that features both a high-capacity, rechargeable lithium-ion battery and an ultra-efficient 1.8-litre petrol engine with intelligent valve timing – VVT-i. The advanced battery technology allows the car to be driven for around 14 miles on its electric power alone – with no tailpipe emissions and zero fuel consumption. Once Prius Plug-in Hybrid has reached the limits of electric range, it switches seamlessly to its full hybrid system, bringing the petrol engine into play. This means the driver can avoid the “range anxiety” associated with all-electric vehicles.

Recharging the battery is quick and simple, taking about 1.5 hours for a full charge on a simple link to home or workplace electricity supply or a roadside charging point. Toyota demonstration programmes for the plug-in hybrid technology, including one in progress in London with EDF Energy and fleet operators from the public and private sector, have already produced real-world data that show the benefits it can deliver in terms of reduced emissions and lower fuel consumption. Ahead of the production car being launched in 2012, Toyota anticipates CO₂ emissions below 50g/km and combined cycle fuel economy of 134.5mpg.

The FCHV-adv demonstrates the significant progress Toyota has made in producing a hybrid system with a hydrogen fuel cell. Based on a conventional Toyota Highlander SUV, it showcases a technology that Toyota expects to bring to the market place as early as 2015.

The FCHV-adv fuel cell system features four compressed hydrogen fuel tanks, an electric motor, a nickel-metal hydride battery, and a power control unit. Hydrogen gas is fed into the fuel cell stack where it is combined with oxygen. The electricity produced by this chemical reaction is used to power the electric motor and to charge the battery. In addition to superior fuel economy, the FCHV-adv produces zero emissions while driving.

Auris Hybrid, built at Toyota’s Burnaston factory in Derbyshire, has brought the benefits of full hybrid technology to the heart of the compact family hatchback market. Emitting just 89g/km of CO₂, it qualifies for zero annual road tax, with further savings in fuel: the car’s official consumption figure is 74.3mpg – both around town and on the open road. In 2011, its first full year of sale, 40% of all Auris sold have been hybrid.

Auris Hybrid proved its strengths in last year’s inaugural Future Car Challenge, winning the category for the most economic and environmentally friendly regular passenger hybrid electric vehicle.

More details about the Future Car Challenge can be found at the official event web site at www.futurecarchallenge.com. The Toyota cars will join more than 60 other competing vehicles in a public display in Regent Street at the conclusion of the challenge, which takes place the day before this year’s London to Brighton Veteran Car Run.

The next generation of Plug Power's widely deployed GenDrivex(R) fuel cell products. Designed as a drop-in replacement for lead-acid batteries in electric lift trucks, GenDrive now features a number of enhancements designed to increase reliability and improve lift and towing capacity.

Innovative Fuel Cell Technology Provides Increased Reliability and Improved Performance, Driving Cost-Savings and Operating Efficiency Improvements for Customers

LATHAM, N.Y.– Plug Power Inc. (Nasdaq:PLUG), a leader in providing clean, reliable energy products, today announced the next generation of its widely deployed GenDrive^® fuel cell products. Designed as a drop-in replacement for lead-acid batteries in electric lift trucks, GenDrive now features a number of enhancements designed to increase reliability and improve lift and towing capacity.

With a simplified architecture and common system platform featuring 30 percent fewer components, GenDrive now provides customers with greater flexibility in managing deployments. “With our application knowledge and advanced technical capabilities, Plug Power has been able to enhance our GenDrive product offerings in a way that simplifies the system and reduces the parts necessary to manufacture the units,” said Adrian Corless, CTO at Plug Power. “As a result, the customer benefits from improved reliability and performance within their lift truck fleet, an important element to building a highly-efficient operation.”

The next-generation GenDrive products leverage Plug Power’s material handling market expertise and are specifically designed to incorporate the lift truck power needs of its material handling customers. For example, lower-priced GenDrive product options are now available to help customers more cost-effectively meet order picking requirements.

GenDrive units have accumulated more than 5 million hours of runtime at customer sites across North America. Plug Power remains the leader in fuel cell system product deployments, including live sites at Walmart, Sysco, BMW and Coca-Cola. On average, GenDrive customers increase productivity by up to 15 percent, lower operational costs by up to 30 percent and reduce site greenhouse gas emissions by up to 80 percent.

“The expansion of our GenDrive product line will provide Plug Power customers with a rugged and reliable power solution to meet their operational and environmental needs,” said Andy Marsh, CEO at Plug Power. “With improved performance and versatility, the next-generation GenDrive product line will help increase lift truck efficiency, while driving down operating costs. Plug Power is now able to service more of the material handling market, enabling more full-fleet conversions of customers eager to adopt this commercially viable solution.”

Plug Power will be demonstrating the capabilities of its next-generation GenDrive fuel cell products in booth 441 at the International Foodservice Distributors Association’s (IFDA) Distribution Solutions Conference, taking place October 24 - 26, 2011 at the Fort Worth Convention Center in Fort Worth, TX. Plug Power Vice President of Sales and Service, Erik Hansen, will participate in a conference panel discussion on fuel cell technology on Monday, October 24 at 9:30 a.m. in room 202B. In addition, qualified customers who visit the Plug Power booth will be entered to win a free, one-week demonstration of the GenDrive product series.

About Plug Power Inc.

The architects of modern fuel cell technology, Plug Power revolutionized the industry with cost-effective power solutions that increase productivity, lower operating costs and reduce carbon footprints. Long-standing relationships with industry leaders forged the path for Plug Power’s key accounts, including Wegmans, Whole Foods, and FedEx Freight.  With more than 1,200 GenDrive units shipped to material handling customers, accumulating over 5 million hours of runtime, Plug Power manufactures tomorrow’s incumbent power solutions today. Additional information about Plug Power is available at www.plugpower.com.

Acta S.p.A. (AIM: ACTA), the clean energy products company, is pleased to announce the commencement and confirmation of funding for the “LIFE+2010“grant-funded project. The Company expects to receive first round funding for the project, totaling €330,000, during December 2011. This is an increase in first round funding compared to the €248,000 that was previously expected to be received this year. The total grant funding available to Acta under the project is €827,000 over the duration of the project.

The overall LIFE+2010 project has a total value of €4.1 million with an expected duration of four years and includes two other project partners; the Polytechnic University of Milan and PEC S.r.l., an Italian engineering and construction company. The scope of the project is to construct the world‘s first integrated solar powered pilot plant for the simultaneous production of hydrogen and magnesium (a hydrogen storage medium) from seawater and to demonstrate the potential of photovoltaic energy peak power storage and re-conversion via hydrogen accumulation.

The pilot project is expected to be located in Taranto in Puglia, an area of southern Italy that has seen the strongest development of photovoltaic installations and where the local government authority has expressed a strong interest in the project‘s economic, technological and environmental potential. The project team is also considering the offer of one of Italy‘s largest compressed gas producers to locate the project in their major gas distribution centre in the area. Acta will be responsible for the solar power generation and hydrogen generation, the re-conversion of excess hydrogen to electricity via fuel cell systems and the electronic control systems within the project. Acta‘s role in the project will demonstrate to the public and to industrial gas producers the significant potential of Acta‘s technology for peak power shaving applications (storing power from peak production and returning it to the grid during peak demand) and compressed hydrogen production.

Brunnthal/Munich, Germany–SFC Energy AG (SFC), technology and market leader in mobile and remote power solutions based on fuel cells, today signed a contract to acquire PBF Group B.V. (PBF), a Dutch worldwide operating company specializing in switched mode power supplies and higher level power management solutions. This is an important step in SFC’s strategic reorientation as a systems provider.

About PBF Group
PBF develops, manufactures, and markets customized high tech power solutions, from power supply units to complete power systems for producers of professional machines and equipment. PBF translates these solutions into actual products, integrating electrical engineering, electronics, mechanical constructions and software. PBF is a fast growing company, strongly driven by technological innovation. Among PBF’s customers are companies such as Philips, Bosch Security Systems, Thales, FEI Company or Coherent; also ACAL BFi has been a long term partner providing a qualified sales channel throughout Europe for PBF. PBF was originally spun out from Philips Electronics NV through a Management Buy Out in 1999. The Company with approx. 100 employees is headquartered in the Netherlands and operates a R&D and production site in Romania.

In financial year 2010 PBF generated unaudited revenues of approx. EUR 9.0 million (2009: approx. EUR 7.0 million). For 2011 revenues of EUR 12 to 13 million are expected.

Acquisition background
The net purchase price amounts up to EUR 9.35 million, consisting of EUR 6.0 million in cash, 350,000 new SFC shares (at a valuation of EUR 5.70 per share), and a  performance-related earn-out payment of up to EUR 1.35 million in cash. The new SFC shares to be issued to the seller at closing derive from authorized capital and are subject to a 24-month lock-up agreement. The earn-out payment is linked to achieving defined targets in the 2012 and 2013 fiscal years. The transaction is expected to be completed before the end of 2011.

SFC will bring its proven off-grid power generation expertise, its strong market position in the leisure, industry and defense markets, an excellent quality track record, and an established strong marketing and sales structure into the new group. This will be ideally complemented by PBF’s power management competence, excellent customer base, and development and production strength at its sites in the Netherlands and Romania.

Both companies’ combined expertise supports the strategic orientation of SFC as a systems provider and offers considerable growth potential to SFC as well as to PBF by increasing both companies’ presence in existing markets, such as industrial applications, security, and defense, as well as extending the customer base into new markets, such as medical equipment. In the future 60 percent of the turnover is planned to be generated in industrial applications. This will significantly reduce SFC’s dependence on seasonal fluctuations in the leisure business and on the defense segment’s traditionally low predictability. Major potential for increased efficiency will result from development, production, and supply chain synergies.

As the number of mobile, off-grid, and grid-based power applications grows, the combined SFC/PBF product portfolio is expected to increase both companies’ market presence. The aggregate revenues of the two companies for the year 2011 are expected be in the range of EUR 26 to 27 million.

Management
The PBF founders will all become part of the combined Company: in the future, the direction of group sales, the management of the Dutch and Romanian locations, and the electronic system development will each be led by a PBF manager.

“We are excited to become part of a leading and well capitalized power solution provider such as SFC,” says Hans Pol, co-founder of PBF Group. “Together, we will bring highly efficient, customized complete power solutions to users world wide.”

“PBF’s power management expertise complements SFC’s power generation strength and focus. This will create a technologically leading system solution competence for off-grid and grid-based power solutions. We expect direct growth opportunities and increased efficiency to result from combining our customer bases, from sharing our development and production capacities in Germany, the Netherlands, and Romania, and from supply chain integration. A more balanced business portfolio is another advantage of this acquisition”, says Dr. Peter Podesser, CEO of SFC Energy AG.

HRH The Duke of York visits ITM Power

Sheffield, UK–ITM Power plc the energy storage and clean fuel company yesterday hosted a visit from HRH The Duke of York. His Royal Highness met with ITM Chairman, Prof. Roger Putnam and CEO Dr. Graham Cooley before taking a tour of the production facility and hydrogen refuelling station.

As part of the visit, The Duke of York inspected ITM Power’s range of hydrogen generation equipment for energy storage and clean fuel production. Of particular interest was the Company’s high efficiency HBox-Solar product that efficiently stores intermittent renewable energy as hydrogen and is aimed at off-grid power back-up applications.

His Royal Highness commented; “I am immensely proud of the innovation and technology that emanates from the UK and it is a privilege to help companies like ITM Power promote their technology around the world. Clean energy and hydrogen in particular will be high growth markets in the years to come and the UK must be in a position to exploit its technology globally. This is an area of industry that I feel very strongly about and it is an area that will present the UK with many opportunities.”

ITM Power CEO commented; “ITM Power’s global profile is developing all the time and having such a well known champion promoting the Company around the world will help to accelerate our global footprint. I was impressed with The Duke’s knowledge of the cleantech sector, he clearly understands the range of technology

The European Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking (FCH JU) has now launched a call for tenders for consultancies able to conduct studies on the commercialisation of fuel cells and hydrogen technologies and competing technologies.

The FCH JU envisages commissioning studies in different sectors where fuel cells and hydrogen technologies are the most promising:

• Urban buses
• Passenger cars, including EU-wide roll-out of infrastructure
• Stationary applications
• Material Handling

For each sector, the studies will be supported by a coalition of industrial actors.

This is an an open procedure for concluding multiple framework contracts. Simultaneously the FCH JU will award a specific contract for the first study on bus Commercialisation.

Applicants are invited to submit together a tender for the framework contract and for the first study.

The maximum overall budget for the whole duration of the framework contracts is € 5 million.

The deadline for submitting an offer is 2 December 2011.

For more information see: FCH JU Vacancies and Procurement