US Department of Energy (DOE) has awarded FuelCell Energy with a $900,000 grant to produce a system of distributed hydrogen production.
FuelCell will develop an electrochemical reactor using the company’s commercial carbonate fuel cell stacks to produce a distributed hydrogen generation method. The new system shall allow hydrogen to be generated more efficiently where it is needed rather than on a large scale at a central plant. According to the company, distributed hydrogen generation would reduce transportation costs and provide reliable fuel supply.
The grant is part of a $20m support to advance hydrogen production and delivery technologies.
“Developing technologies that can economically produce and deliver hydrogen to power fuel cells from diverse, domestic and renewable resources can enable substantial reductions in energy use and carbon emissions,” federal energy officials said.
“This award from the U.S. Department of Energy will get the R&D started on this concept, which could be an attractive approach to generate hydrogen in a low or carbon-neutral manner,” said Anthony Leo, vice president of FuelCell. Using direct fuel stacks makes the stationary fuel cell power plant versatile, claimed Leo.
The manufacturer recently completed an installation of a 14.9MW fuel cell park in Bridgeport, US, owned by Dominion Corporate.