FISHER ANNOUNCES $4 MILLION FOR FUEL CELL DEVELOPMENT
COLUMBUS, OHIO (December 12, 2008) -
Lieutenant Governor Lee Fisher today announced that more than $4.2 million in grants have been awarded to six entities for the advancement of fuel cell research and production in Ohio. The funds were awarded through the Ohio Third Frontier Fuel Cell Program and are contingent upon State Controlling Board approval.
"Having invested heavily in fuel cell research and development, Ohio is at the forefront of many technological advances in this industry sector," said Lt. Governor Fisher, who also serves as Director of the Ohio Department of Development and Chair of the Ohio Third Frontier Commission. "We are proud to support these collaborative endeavors in fuel cell technology that continue to foster innovation and spur economic growth across the state."
The awards are as follows:
2009 Ohio Third Frontier Fuel Cell Award for Advanced Research,
Development & Commercialization
Energy Technologies (ETI), located in Mansfield (Richland County), was awarded $1 million for its Development of a High-Volume Manufacturing Process for Metal Hydride Fuel Cell (MHFC) Stack and Systems project. Energy Technologies will expand on their 2008 Ohio Third Frontier Fuel Cell Program award and will develop and implement a high volume production capability for producing the metal hydride fuel cell stack, stack components welding process and balance-of-plant (BOP) integration at Energy Technologies' facilities. The project is to set up Energy Technologies' collaborator, Michigan-based Energy Conversion Devices' electrode manufacturing line and the stack assembly and joining line at Energy Technologies. The electrode manufacturing line will use the low cost methods commonly used in the battery manufacturing industry and the stack joining will use laser methods currently outsourced that will be brought into Energy Technologies.
Rolls-Royce Fuel Cell Systems (RRFCS), located in North Canton (Stark County), was awarded $600,000 for its Low Cost Internal Steam Reformer for 1MW SOFC Electric Power System project. RRFCS will improve the performance and reduce the cost of a critical component in RRFCS's fuel cell design—the internal steam reformers (ISRs). The current internal steam reformer was developed by Rolls-Royce in the U.K. and has demonstrated baseline performance requirements. However, its cost and durability are barriers yet to be overcome. In this project, RRFCS will transfer the current internal steam reformer technology to its Ohio operations to address these barriers and develop a commercially viable internal steam reformer. The project will establish a new performance baseline using a catalyst manufactured by BASF that offers a 50 percent internal steam reformer cost reduction. The Ohio State University will explore catalyst performance to determine pathways to an order-of-magnitude lower cost internal steam reformer.
Lockheed Martin-Akron (LM-Akron), located in Akron (Summit County), was awarded $998,393 for its Military Solid Oxide Fuel Cell (SOFC) Genset project. The proposed project is aimed at developing a Solid Oxide Fuel Cell system, including balance-of-plant (BOP) components that can meet military performance requirements for mobile generator sets (gensets) and demonstrating continuous generator operation for greater than 1000 hours. Technology Management, Inc. (TMI), based in Cleveland, will be responsible for developing a flexible fuel processor to provide the hydrogen fuel, improving its manufacturing process to insure Solid Oxide Fuel Cell stack quality and repeatability, and optimizing the system performance for the military application. LM-Akron will assess the durability barriers that the Solid Oxide Fuel Cell stack and balance-of-plant will need to address and develop the appropriate balance-of-plant. Stark State College of Technology, located in Canton, will conduct reliability testing of key balance-of-plant components. LM-Akron will assemble 1-kW prototypes for demonstrating efficient, reliable operation, and for demonstrating operation on multiple fuels.
Battelle, located in Columbus (Franklin County), was awarded $1 million for its Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Power Generator Prototype project. Using internal funding and military support, Battelle has developed a prototype Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cell -based Advanced Power Generator (APG) to replace internal combustion engine generators used by the military. However, the Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cell has not been able to meet military requirements for operation on high sulfur military fuels. Because Solid Oxide Fuel Cell technology is more sulfur tolerant, Battelle proposes integrating Solid Oxide Fuel Cell technology developed by NexTech Materials, located in Lewis Center, OH, into the Advanced Power Generator. The project tasks include Solid Oxide Fuel Cell stack design and modeling to meet the Advanced Power Generator requirements, fuel reformer validation and selection, Solid Oxide Fuel Cell stack validation and testing, balance-of-plant modifications and system integration, and testing and demonstration of a complete 2-kW Advanced Power Generator system. The successful demonstration of the packaged prototype running on military fuel will position the Battelle/NexTech team to leverage additional military support to commercialize the Advanced Power Generator.
2009 Ohio Third Frontier Fuel Cell Award for Applied Research & Development
Contained Energy, located in Cleveland (Cuyahoga County), was awarded $350,000 for its Improved Direct Carbon Fuel Cell Stack Efficiency project. Contained Energy will expand upon the work being performed under their 2007 Ohio Third Frontier Fuel Cell Program grant. The primary objective is to further improve cell efficiency and complete the commercial design issues defined in the ongoing project. Specifically the project objectives are to understand the conditions in the anode that achieve the needed full polarization, develop an effective separator (membrane), develop an effective seal to prevent electrolyte leakage, improve the cell power density (at least 100mW/cm2) and build a 3-cell stack achieving 50 percent efficiency for 72 hours.
The Ohio State University Research Foundation, located in Columbus (Franklin County), was awarded $350,000 for its development of Cost Effective Membrane Electrolyte Assembly and Direct Borohydride Fuel Cell project. The Ohio State University Research Foundation will develop a more efficient, low cost membrane electrode assembly (MEA) for a Direct Borohydride Fuel Cell (DBFC) developed at Ohio State University under a subcontract from a Battelle Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) military contract. The Ohio State University's collaborator, ITN Energy Systems, will use its proprietary expertise in thin film coating onto polymer films to apply the catalyst to the cell membrane. Single and multiple Direct Borohydride Fuel Cells will be assembled, characterized and tested at Ohio State University. The targeted market for the resulting Direct Borohydride Fuel Cell is battery replacement in portable and mobile power applications (20 watts to 200 watts). Upon successful completion of the project, ITN Energy Systems, a Colorado-based company, plans to start a membrane electrode assembly manufacturing business in Ohio and eventually an Ohio Direct Borohydride Fuel Cell manufacturing facility.
The Ohio Third Frontier was initiated in February 2002. This project is the state's largest-ever commitment to expanding Ohio's high-tech research capabilities and promoting innovation and company formation that will create high-paying jobs for generations to come. The 10-year, $1.6 billion initiative is designed to: Build world-class research capacity; Support early stage capital formation and the development of new products; and Finance advanced manufacturing technologies to help existing industries become more productive. Through the Ohio Third Frontier Project, additional federal and private sector support can boost the total investment to more than $6 billion.
Created in 2002, the Ohio Fuel Cell Initiative is a $103 million program that aims to spur job creation in Ohio while positioning the State as a national leader in the growing fuel cell industry. The initiative is an integral part of the Third Frontier Project, a $1.6 billion high-tech research program designed to create jobs and bring new products to market. To date, more than $77 million in funds have been awarded to Fuel Cell projects across the state.
Working with our partners across business, state and local governments, academia, and the non-profit sector, the Ohio Department of Development works to attract, create, grow, and retain businesses through competitive incentives and targeted investments. Engaged every day in marketing, innovating, investing, and collaborating, the Ohio Department of Development works at the speed of business to accelerate and support the teamwork that is absolutely necessary for success by providing financial, informational, and technical assistance to those making an investment in Ohio's future.
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