Platinum free cathode technology now performing at level of conventional fuel cells
ACAL Energy Ltd. has today announced the achievement of a significant technical milestone that should enable rapid commercialisation of its platinum free cathode technology (FlowCath(tm)) for proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cells. The Company has obtained peak power density figures from its development fuel cells that consistently exceed 570mW/cm2 since late December 2008. This performance represents a new record power density level from a liquid platinum free cathode system. ACAL Energy’s system is now performing at levels competitive with conventional fuel cells. Further improvements are expected in 2009, with an ultimate peak power density target of over 1W/cm2.
PEM fuel cells are a highly efficient and clean energy production technology, capable of replacing combustion engines in a wide variety of applications including remote and distributed power, residential cogeneration as well as automotive and mobile power applications. FlowCath(tm) replaces the expensive precious metal catalyst found in conventional fuel cells with a proprietary low cost liquid catalyst. This not only reduces the cost of the fuel cell, but also provides significant durability and reliability benefits through system simplification and the elimination of the most common failure mechanisms found in standard fuel cells. The company plans to introduce a 1kW demonstration system in 2009.
“This is a very significant achievement and clearly demonstrates that ACAL Energy’s liquid cathode technology will deliver performance that compares very well with conventional platinum fuel cells” comments Dr Sb Cha, Chief Executive of ACAL Energy, “… at much lower cost and improved reliability. I congratulate our technical team and Dr. Andy Creeth, our CTO, on this impressive achievement.”
For further information, please contact Amanda Lyne at ACAL Energy:
Tel: +44 (0)1928 511581
E-mail : alyne@acalenergy.co.uk
http://www.acalenergy.co.uk
About ACAL Energy Limited
ACAL Energy is a developer of a new fuel cell technology that will enable low cost and highly reliable fuel cell systems for a wide variety of applications. The company was founded in August 2004 by FlowCath(tm) inventor Dr Andrew Creeth and is headquartered in Runcorn, UK.
Fuel cells are a highly efficient and clean energy production technology capable of replacing combustion engines in applications including remote and distributed power and residential cogeneration, as well as automotive and mobile power applications. FlowCath(tm) replaces the expensive precious metal catalyst found in conventional fuel cells with a proprietary low cost liquid catalyst. This not only reduces the cost of the fuel cell, but also provides significant durability and reliability benefits through system simplification and the elimination of the most common failure mechanisms found in standard fuel cells.
