NEWS

4Fuel Cells Bulletin July 2013

three French companies. Cycleurope designs, manufactures and distributes bicycles, and is a European leader in the electric bicycle market. Pragma Industries has developed a new concept of hydrogen PEM fuel cell that is particularly suitable for portable applications and electric mobility. The third partner is Ventec, a leading French specialist in the design and production of battery management systems (BMS) for lithium-ion batteries.

The Alter Bike utilises several technological solutions, including a new type of hydrogen fuel cell, hydrogen chemical storage in recyclable canisters, as well as a hybrid electronic architecture that balances power needs between the Li-ion battery and the fuel cell. The objective is to market the Alter Bike from early 2014, initially to public organisations, and to the general public from 2016.

Pragma Industries, Bidart, France. Tel: +33 5 5951 2755, www.pragma-industries.com

Ventec: www.ventec-bms.com

Cycleurope: www.cycleurope.com

First hydrogen fuel cell powered ferry in UK demos green tech

The UK’s first hydrogen-powered ferry – named Hydrogenesis

– is operating in Bristol harbour, demonstrating the practical and commercial advantages of fuel cell technology during a pilot scheme over the summer.

The Hydrogenesis ferry is being operated by Bristol Hydrogen Boats – a consortium between No. 7 Boat Trips, Bristol Packet Boat Trips, and Auriga Energy, which developed the PEM fuel cell system – while Air Products is providing the hydrogen and a dockside refueling station. Bristol City Council provided initial funding of £225 000 (US$343 000) as part of its Bristol Green Capital initiatives. The Hydrogenesis project aims to kickstart enterprise in new environmental technology and new areas of economic growth in Bristol.

‘With the arrival of the heat wave, the prize-winning Hydrogenesis has been demonstrated to operate in all weather conditions, showing the viability of the new zero-emission fuel cell technologies in marine transport operations,’ says Jas Singh, managing director of Auriga Energy and spokesperson for the consortium.

The Hydrogenesis ferry made its first trial voyage in Bristol harbour in August 2012 [FCB, November 2012, p5]. The 11 m (36 ft) vessel,

which is licensed to carry up to 12 passengers per journey, began public service in February and will continue until late August, when the hydrogen refueling station is due to be decommissioned as part of the original planning conditions. Hydrogen is stored in a tank at up to 350 bar (10 000 psi), which is refueled from a purpose-built Air Products refueler.

The steel-hulled Hydrogenesis ferry is powered by four Auriga Energy air-cooled PEM fuel cells – containing stacks supplied by Ballard Power Systems – that provide up to 12 kW of steady-state continuous power at 48 V. The Auriga Energy Power Management Unit controls the combined power delivery to the propeller via two permanent magnet Lynch motors. The ferry operator has found that the various efficiency measures allow up to four days of service before refueling, rather than the anticipated daily refills.

The project consortium is in discussions about trialing the ferry in other cities, such as Cardiff in Wales and Glasgow in Scotland, which is hosting next year’s Commonwealth Games.

Auriga Energy Ltd, Bristol, UK. Tel: +44 117 941 5340, www.auriga-energy.com

Bristol Hydrogen Boats Ltd: www.bristolhydrogenboats.co.uk

Bristol City Council: www.bristol.gov.uk

Air Products UK, Hydrogen as Fuel: www.airproducts.co.uk/h2energy

Air Products, Hydrogen Energy: www.airproducts.com/h2energy

Ballard Power Systems: www.ballard.com

Ultra Electronics AMI fuel cells for UAVs, critical military tech

Solid oxide fuel cell power sources from Michigan-based Ultra

Electronics AMI are providing a reliable power option to the US military. The company’s lightweight SOFCs, running on widely available propane, are powering unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for the US Army in Afghanistan.

Modern military strategy relies on the ability to quietly and quickly obtain intelligence in harsh, dangerous settings. These unmanned operations are run remotely, where the military is completely off-grid, away from reliable sources of power. Although batteries are the most common power source for portable equipment used by the military, they are not ideal for UAVs or other technologies that

enable soldiers to move quickly and quietly in dangerous settings.

Soldiers currently recover and relaunch a UAV several times during a single day. Batteries simply do not offer enough power for a long-duration flight where cameras and other equipment – powered by the same battery as the UAV’s engine – are in use. These stops and starts are time-consuming, costly, and disruptive.

The US Army is currently using RoAMIo Defender fuel cells from Ultra Electronics AMI in the field in Afghanistan [FCB, August 2012, p3]. In addition to the power needed to fly the UAV, the integrated fuel cell system generates excess power that can then run added UAV payloads such as additional cameras and sensors that extend the military’s surveillance capabilities.

‘Fuel cells aren’t new technology for the military,’ explains Tom Koonce, programme manager of Lockheed Martin’s Rapid Operation Programs. ‘The military is finding new ways to make portable, efficient power available to soldiers. Fuel cells provide efficient electrical power for modern military operations in situations where other power generation systems simply don’t work.’

Using the Defender fuel cell to power mission-critical UAVs and associated technologies gives the military unprecedented capabilities from its air, ground and logistics equipment. Using a single fuel cell, extended capabilities include longer UAV flight times, continuous power for uninterrupted on-the-ground technology and equipment, and reduced weight and logistics burden when batteries are used for backup instead of primary power.

Ultra Electronics AMI, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA. Tel: +1 734 302 7632, www.ultra-ami.com

European HYCARUS project to demo fuel cell power in aircraft

HYCARUS is a new three-year, E10 million (US$13 million)

European research and development project that aims to demonstrate the potential of hydrogen PEM fuel cells to supply electrical power for auxiliary applications onboard aircraft.

The HYCARUS project – coordinated by aerospace systems integrator Zodiac Aerospace – will investigate the use of PEM fuel cell system technologies in non-essential aircraft applications such as galleys, lavatories, or crew rest compartments in a large commercial aircraft, or as secondary power sources onboard business jets. The application of such

NEWS

July 2013 Fuel Cells Bulletin5

efficient technologies will reduce aircraft fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions, and offer innovative services to aircraft manufacturers and airliners.

The project consortium also includes the French energy research organisation CEA, aircraft manufacturer Dassault Aviation, industrial gases giant Air Liquide, and the collaborative R&D consultancy ARTTIC in France; test facility organisations the Instituto Nacional de Tecnica Aeroespacial (INTA) in Spain and the EC Joint Research Centre’s Institute for Energy and Transport (JRC-IET) in the Netherlands; and Driessen Aerospace in the Czech Republic. The project is partially supported by the European Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking (FCH JU).

Air Liquide’s role is to develop high-pressure storage systems and supply of hydrogen gas onboard for the fuel cell. The system must be compatible with the special constraints imposed by an aeronautic environment, such as weight, lack of space, temperature, vibration etc. Air Liquide is also responsible for a study of the various solutions for supplying hydrogen on the ground.

Zodiac Aerospace: www.zodiacaerospace.com

Air Liquide, Hydrogen Energy: www.airliquide-hydrogen-energy.com

HYCARUS project: www.hycarus.eu (website under construction)

Ballard next-gen fuel cell system targets telecom backup power

Canadian-based Ballard Power Systems has launched its next-

generation ElectraGen™-ME backup power system for the telecom market. The methanol-fueled product features a number of enhancements that further improve reliability, durability, as well as ease of maintenance and servicing. These benefits are important for the growing number of telecom operators deploying these systems around the world.

Sales growth of Ballard’s ElectraGen-ME methanol-fueled telecom backup power systems has been driven by two distinct needs. Markets with unreliable electricity grids need backup power for regular (sometimes daily) power outages, while markets with reliable grids can be vulnerable to extended power outages in crisis situations, such as extreme weather

conditions. These needs underpin Ballard’s growing shipment volumes to markets such as South Africa [FCB, October 2012, p5] and Indonesia [FCB, February 2013, p5], where grids are unreliable, along with the Caribbean [FCB, June 2013, p5] and Japan, where there are concerns over potential weather- and tsunami-related events, respectively.

The next-generation product offers a number of reliability improvements, including a more than 25% increase in system mean time between failures (MTBF), and a threefold increase in cycle life through upgrades to the fuel processor module. Durability has also been extended through increased use of corrosion-resistant coatings on many system components, as well as improvements to the fuel level sensor and fluid flow paths.

Servicing and maintenance have also been made easier through added functionality in system firmware, along with better component access and labeling. The ElectraGen-ME system includes a reformer that converts the HydroPlus™ methanol-water liquid fuel mixture into hydrogen gas used by the fuel cell.

Ballard has shipped more than 200 ElectraGen systems to South Africa and Indonesia over the past 10 months, where unreliable grid conditions result in frequent outages that often last for extended periods of time. The company has also shipped more than 300 ElectraGen systems this year to Nokia Siemens Networks for deployment with major telecom service providers in Japan, who are ‘hardening’ their networks with extended backup power capabilities, in the aftermath of the 2011 tsunami crisis [FCB, November 2012, p1].

Ballard Power Systems, Burnaby, BC, Canada. Tel: +1 604 454 0900, www.ballard.com/nextgen

Intelligent Energy, Microqual hook up in telecom collaboration

UK-based Intelligent Energy has signed a Memorandum

of Understanding with Microqual Techno Ltd in Mumbai, to establish a partnership to provide telecom infrastructure using equipment mounted on existing power transmission towers in India. The partnership gives Intelligent Energy access to approximately 85 000 towers in India, which could hold telecom equipment powered by its PEM fuel cell technology.

Microqual has exclusive rights from Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd and other

I N B R I E F

Toyota to launch fuel cell car in 2015Toyota will introduce a fuel cell electric vehicle in the US and Japan in 2015, according to a Nikkei report. The confirmation of the automaker’s commitment to the 2015 timescale came from James Lentz, president and COO of Toyota Motor North America. Toyota plans to show its next-generation FCEV saloon car at the Tokyo Motor Show in November, prior to going on sale next year as a 2015 model. A Bloomberg report said that the car could be available in US dealerships priced against a mid-size BMW or Tesla Model S.

Honda plans to launch the successor to its FCX Clarity in Japan and the US in 2015 [see page 2], while Korean automaker Hyundai plans to build 1000 of its ix35 Fuel Cell cars by 2015, with the first cars already on the road in Denmark [FCB, June 2013, p2].

Audi developing fuel cell powered A7 carWhile German auto giant Volkswagen is making progress in its engineering services contract with Ballard Power Systems [FCB, June 2013, p3], its prestige brand Audi is first to announce a next-generation FCEV. Audi’s technical chief Wolfgang Dürheimer recently told Autocar magazine that the company is developing a fuel cell powered A7 sportback, which is expected to begin trials at the end of August.

DOE well-to-wheel, life-cycle cost studiesThe Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) in the US Department of Energy recently released peer-reviewed documentation detailing its updated analyses of well-to-wheels greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and petroleum energy usage (http://tinyurl.com/doe-wtw-ldv) – as well as life-cycle cost analysis (http://tinyurl.com/doe-lifecycle-car) – for next-generation light-duty vehicles and cars that could be deployed in the 2035 timescale.

EERE’s Sustainable Transportation Office updated and documented the records, which document the assumptions and results of analyses based on several fuel/vehicle pathways, including advanced internal combustion engines, hybrid electric, plug-in hybrid electric, battery electric, and fuel cell electric vehicles. The fuels assumed for the GHG analysis included gasoline with 10% ethanol (E10), diesel, E85 from corn and corn stover, ‘drop-in’ gasoline from biomass, natural gas, grid or renewable electricity, and hydrogen from various feedstocks.

The analyses used the latest versions of applicable models (maintained by Argonne National Lab, the National Renewable Energy Lab, and Sandia National Labs) and assumptions for technology advances based on DOE technical and cost targets that have been extensively reviewed by technical experts.

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