MTI MicroFuel Cells Inc. (Albany, NY), a subsidiary of Mechanical Technology Inc., announced it has received an award from the US Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Hydrogen, Fuel Cells and Infrastructure Technologies. MTI Micro has received notice of selection for a three year, cost-shared development contract through a merit-reviewed, competitive process, involving academia, industry and DOE national laboratories. The program is expected to receive $3 million in funding from the DOE, which will be matched by a like amount from the MTI Micro team, for a total program of $6 million.
Shared with its subcontract partners, the award will fund future advancement of MTI Micro's mobile consumer direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) platform, which generates electrical power in a passive mode using 100-percent (neat) methanol as fuel. By developing mass-manufacturing techniques while simultaneously optimizing its DMFC technology platform, the collaborative work is expected to contribute to MTI Micro's planned improvements in cost reduction, reliability and performance.
"The Department of Energy has been a longtime leader in helping companies develop advanced energy technologies to address national priorities related to energy security," said MTI Micro CEO and President William Acker. "The adoption of micro fuel cells for portable electronics, driven by low-cost, high-volume manufacturing, provides a pathway that will benefit the entire fuel cell industry, and the fact that the DOE has recognized this effect through making this award a is testament to their vision."
