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Overview

In its 5^th consecutive year, Small Fuel Cells 2003 will not only address the most recent challenges faced by developers and manufacturers of portable fuel cells, but will also examine the rapidly growing demands of producers and consumers of small-to-miniature scale electronic devices. In addition, our internationally recognized experts will discuss the latest developments in direct methanol, proton-exchange membrane, solid oxide, MEMS and other portable fuel cell types. Recent materials and technology innovations in the fields of hydrogen generation and storage, catalysts, membranes, and separator materials will be discussed along with a comprehensive comparison of development and commercialization progress in rechargeable battery and fuel cells.

Among the featured topics highlighting the-state-of-the art in technology development, engineering, design and commercialization are:

• Small fuel cell vs. Li-Ion battery
• Portable fuel cell systems - from modeling to production technology
• Factors affecting DMFC performance
• Challenges to DMFC commercialization
• Small scale PEM fuel cells technology
• Fuel processing microreactors for hydrogen production
• Reformed hydrogen fuel cell system for portable power applications
• High temperature MEA development for PEM fuel cells
• Progress in MEMS fuel cells development
• Small diffusion driven fuel cells
• Direct liquid fuel cell power pack
• Micro solid oxide fuel cell
• Micro-fuel cell research in Japan

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A 2-day Main Conference program will be preceded by a Pre-Conference Workshop:

This half-day workshop will explore the prospects of advanced carbon nanostructures and devices based on them for use in small fuel cells presented by leading academia and industry experts. Discussion will touch upon carbon nanostructures application for hydrogen storage, catalysts support, bipolar plates, gas diffusion layers, proton exchange membranes and other fuel cells applications.

Agenda

Wednesday, May 7, 2003

1:15 Registration, Poster Setup and refreshments

2:00 Chairperson’s Opening Remarks
Mark Hampden-Smith, PhD, Vice President and Director, Superior MicroPowders

2:10 Fuel Cell Applications of Carbon Nanotube-Metal Catalyst Composites
Thomas Gennett, PhD, Professor of Chemistry, Co-Director, NanoPower Research Laboratory, Rochester Institute of Technology
Novel carbon materials with nanometer dimensions are of potentially significant importance for a number of advanced technological applications. Of particular interest are the possibilities associated with the incorporation of carbon nanotube-metal catalyst composite electrodes into hydrogen and/or methanol fuel cells. An overview of the electrochemical characterization and fuel cell efficiencies associated with the incorporation of these materials into conventional and microelectronic PEM fuel cells will be presented.

2:50 Single-Wall Carbon Nanotubes ("Buckytubes") in PEM Fuel Cells
David A. Karohl, Director of Business Development, Carbon Nanotechnologies, Inc.
The molecular perfection of Buckytubes and the unique characteristics of carbon-carbon bonds endow them with extremely high material properties such as the electrical conductivity of copper, more than double the thermal conductivity of diamond and one hundred times the tensile strength of steel. Furthermore, the unique arrangement of atoms within a Buckytube results in a structure that has highly accessible surface area and a very high aspect ratio. The combination of these properties and characteristics makes Buckytubes very promising for applications in fuel cells. The speaker will cover his company’s perspective on the uses of Buckytubes in PEM fuel cells in areas such as bipolar plates, gas diffusion layers, catalyst supports, and proton exchange membranes.

3:30 Discussion Break

4:00 Carbon Aerogel Based Nanocomposites for Fuel Cells
Can Erkey, PhD, Associate Professor, Dept Chemical Engineering, University of Connecticut
Composites of carbon aerogels with precious metals such as platinum and ruthenium are nanostructured materials prepared by sol-gel methods. The ability to tailor their properties such as pore volume, pore size, pore size distribution and metallic crystallite size at the nanolevel enables one to create materials with superior properties. The application of such materials to fuel cells for use as electrocatalysts in preparation of membrane electrode assemblies and for use as catalysts in reforming of petroleum based fuels for hydrogen production will be discussed.

4:40 A Simple Method to Synthesize Highly Loaded, Highly Dispersed Pt on Carbon Nanostructures
John R. Regalbuto, PhD, Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering, University of Illinois at Chicago
Our fundamental studies of catalyst impregnation, particularly in the adsorption of charged metal coordination complexes onto oxides and carbons, have led to a simple process to fabricate potentially useful Pt/C electrocatalysts. By controlling the carbon point of zero charge and the solution pH, chloroplatinic acid can be induced to adsorb in a well dispersed fashion at high weight loadings of onto many types of common and nanostructured carbon.

5:20 Open Discussion. All Speakers Available to Take Questions
Facilitator - Mark Hampden-Smith

5:45 End of Workshop

Thursday, May 8, 2003

8:00 Registration, Poster/Exhibit Viewing/Setup, Coffee and Pastries

8:50 Chairperson’s Opening Remarks
Jerald A. Hallmark, Manager, Energy Technology Labs, Motorola Labs

9:00 KEY NOTE ADDRESS
A Critical Overview of the Technologies and Issues in the Commercialization of Small Fuel Cells for Portable Power Applications
Mark Hampden-Smith, PhD, Vice President and Director, Superior MicroPowders
Power-hungry portable electronic devices have been identified as an early market opportunity for the introduction of fuel cells as power sources for both economic and logistic reasons. The attributes of various fuel cell technologies for different market applications will be reviewed and outstanding issues in the development of these technologies will be discussed.

9:45 Small Fuel Cell vs. Li-Ion battery
Kurt R. Kelty, Director, Battery R&D Center, Panasonic Technologies
Over the last 20 years we have witnessed the evolution of rechargeable battery chemistry from Ni-Cd to Ni-MH to Li-ion. It is widely expected that energy densities of batteries will continue to increase at an incremental pace over the next few years, but this will unlikely satisfy developers of high tech applications. This situation of "energy storage deprivation" will become especially acute as the new cell phones / PDA’s / convergence devices add more functionality to their products. Theoretically, fuel cells can provide an order of magnitude improvement in energy density over Li-ion batteries. This presentation will focus on the comparison of small fuel cells vs. Li-ion batteries in portable applications. Specific attention will be focused on the technical, cost, regulatory and marketing hurdles that face DMFC developers.

10:20 Refreshment Break, Exhibit/Poster Viewing

10:50 Kilowatt-Class Portable Fuel Cell Systems for Military and Other Applications
David J. Edlund, PhD, Senior Vice President and CTO, IdaTech, LLC
This paper will describe fully integrated fuel cell systems rated to yield from 1 to 2 kW of electrical power. These systems utilize PEMFC technology and advanced, compact fuel processors that allow the system to be operated on liquid fuel (methanol/water mixture). The system design uses modular components and subsystems to facilitate rapid modification and qualification of new products (e.g., alternative fuels and scale up or down).

11:25 An Overview of the Portable Power Program at Ball Aerospace
Steven T. Harford, PhD, Senior Systems Engineer, Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp.
Various development efforts at Ball Aerospace have resulted in a product suite encompassing portable power solutions ranging from 20 Watts to 500 Watts. Design issues resulting in the employment of either hydrogen or methanol as an anodic fuel will be discussed in detail with an emphasis on resultant specific power. Finally a commercially available universal power harvester capable of fuel cell operation optimization, secondary battery management and uninterrupted power regulation will be introduced.

12:00 Small Scale PEM Fuel Cell Technology from 50 Watts to 1 kW
Frank Ignazzitto, Vice President Marketing and Sales, Avista Labs
Avista Labs will discuss small-scale PEM fuel cell technology in the range of 50 Watts to 1 kW. The discussion will include target markets that offer opportunities for this technology and specific applications within those markets. Avista Labs will address how fuel cells can compete with the incumbent technologies that are entrusted in these applications today and define Avista Labs’ product offering to these markets. A realistic view of fuel cell advantages as well as remaining obstacles to market penetration will also be reviewed.

12:35 Luncheon Sponsored by The Knowledge Foundation

2:00 Chairperson’s Remarks
Shimshon Gottesfeld, PhD, Vice President for R&D and CTO, MTI MicroFuel Cells

2:05 A Reformed Hydrogen Fuel Cell System for Portable Power Applications
Jerald A. Hallmark, Manager, Energy Technology Labs, Motorola Labs
A reformed methanol-to-hydrogen fuel cell system is being developed for portable power applications. This miniature fuel processor was designed and built using a multi-layer ceramic technology and converts liquid methanol fuel into hydrogen rich gas suitable for an elevated temperature PEM
Fuel Cell. This fuel processor unit was thermally integrated with the fuel cell unit and enclosed with an insulator to evaluate the reformed hydrogen fuel cell system.

2:40 High Temperature MEA Development for PEM Fuel Cells
James M. Fenton, PhD, Professor of Chemical Engineering, Associate Director, Environmental Research Institute, Dept Chemical Engineering, University of Connecticut*
UConn/IONOMEM has developed an innovative proton exchange membrane that provides excellent ionic conductivity in an under-saturated environment. Membrane-electrode assemblies (MEAs) have also been developed for this environment. These MEAs have been evaluated with a reference operating condition of 120C cell temperature and one atmosphere reactant pressure. These MEAs are currently being evaluated for various fuel cell applications, which operate on hydrogen fuel containing carbon monoxide or on pure hydrogen in the absence of reactant humidification. The favorable MEA properties are obtained by the incorporation of solid proton conductors, such as phosphotungstic acid or zirconium hydrogen phosphate, into the Nafion® ionomeric electrolyte to provide protonic conductivity at reduced water vapor pressure and assist in water retention.
*In collaboration with: H.R.Kunz, UConn, and L.J.Bonville, IONOMEM Corp.

3:15 New Progress in MEMS Fuel Cells Development
Christel E. Roux, PhD, R&D Engineer, New Scientific Development for Small Power Sources, Commissariat à l’Energie Atomique, France*
The National Atomic Agency of France develops researches on MEMS fuel cells. The singularity of the technology set up in using microelectronic process for the elaboration of the core. The procedure for preparing the micro fuel cell and the corresponding performances in representative conditions (fuel in an ode and air gas at room temperature in cathode) will be also presented. Those developed architectures can be used with different fuels. Several drawbacks and advantages will be discussed.
*In collaboration with: A.Martinent, C.Nayoze, J.Y.Laurent, J.Arroyo, P.Capron, D.Marsacq, CEA-Grenoble, France

3:50 Refreshment Break, Exhibit/Poster Viewing

4:20 Microfluidic Considerations for Micro Fuel Cell Systems
Kevin G. Stanley, Project Leader, Sensing and Microsystems, National Research Council of Canada*
Micro direct methanol fuel cells (DMFCs) are usually fabricated using microelectromechanical (MEMS) fabrication techniques pioneered by the semiconductor industry. However, most theoretical treatments do not address the fluidic effects present at sub-millimeter scales. This paper will present the kinds of micro fluidic effects that can be expected in micro fuel cells, under what operating conditions they will be encountered, and design techniques to mitigate or benefit from these effects.
*In collaboration with: J.Wu, NRC Canada; A.Parameswaran, Simon Fraser University

4:55 Fuel Processing Microreactors for Hydrogen Production by Methanol Reforming
Mayuresh V. Kothare, PhD, Professor and Ashish V. Pattekar, Dept Chemical Engineering, Lehigh University
Research at the Integrated Microchemical Systems Laboratory is directed towards the development of microreactors for hydrogen production fabricated using MEMS-based microfabrication and semiconductor-processing techniques. A silicon chip based packed-bed microreactor has been successfully fabricated and tested for carrying out the reaction of methanol reforming for hydrogen production using commercial catalysts. Theoretical modeling and analysis of the implemented design and a description of the microfabrication techniques followed will be presented in this talk along with results from experimental runs of the developed prototype.

5:30 Open Discussion

5:45 End of Day One

Friday, May 9, 2003

8:00 Poster/Exhibit Viewing, Coffee and Pastries

8:55 Chairperson’s Remarks
Christopher Hebling, PhD, Head of Energy Technology Dept, Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems, Germany

9:00 Recent Advances in the Technology of Small DMFCs at MTI Microfuel Cells
Shimshon Gottesfeld, PhD, Vice President for R&D and CTO, MTI Microfuel Cells
This talk will provide an update on advances made most recently at MTI Microfuel Cells in technology platforms, product and business developments. We report on a technology platform that allows to operate a passive DMFC system with neat methanol, thereby taking full advantage of the energy density of the fuel and, at the same time, drastically minimizing system complexity and parasitic power losses. Minimization of "BOP" in such a passive DMFC system, would allow achieving 50%, or more, of volume occupancy by neat methanol and, having practically eliminated parasitic power losses, achieving system energy density exceeding that of a Li-ion battery.

9:35 Technical & Commercial Issues of DMFC: 5 W for Mobile Device and 100 W for Portable Power
Hyuk Chang, PhD, Principal Researcher, Materials & Devices Lab, Samsung Advanced Institute of Technology, Korea
Although there have been several technical progresses of DMFC pack, commercial value of the latest proto is still far from the market acceptance with regard to its cost and size compared with currently available battery technology. Achievement of much higher power density in passive condition, membrane with very low crossover, product reliability and severe cost reduction are still required. These technical and commercial issues will be discussed in detail. In the mean time, newly developed materials such as high surface catalyst support and novel membranes also with 5 W (DC 3.6 V) micro cell pack for mobile devices and 100 W power bank system (AC 220 V) will be presented.

10:10 From Single Cells to Stacks: Factors Affecting Direct Methanol Fuel Cell Performance
Allison M. Fisher, PhD, Principal Staff Scientist, Energy Technology Labs, Motorola Labs
Optimizing DMFC performance requires careful orchestration of a wide variety of parameters, particularly when progressing from a single cell to stack. In this presentation the results of Motorola’s DMFC single cell and stack performance optimization will be described. A comparison of prototype commercial DMFC MEAs with Motorola-fabricated MEAs will be presented, as well as the effect of parameters such as fuel stoichiometry, temperature, catalyst type and loading, and fuel flow field design on the short- and long-term performance of these DMFCs.

10:45 Refreshment Break, Exhibit/Poster Viewing

11:15 Challenges to DMFC Commercialization
Eugene S. Smotkin, PhD, Chief Executive Officer, NuVant Systems, Inc.
DMFC performance curves are discussed as a function of three parameters, (1) temperature, (2) fuel flow-rate and (3) concentration. Methanol crossover was measured by gas chromatography as a function of these three parameters at 100 mA/cm2 in the single pass fuel delivery mode. The data was used to model a continuous loop mode where pure methanol is injected into a loop that circulates through the flow-field and recovers water from the cathode. The modeled loop composition is identical to the fuel stream used in the single pass experiments (dilute aqueous methanol). The model results, presented in three-dimensional surfaces, elucidate the impact of parameter variations on the energy and power density of the DMFC and the link between those two figures of merit. In addition, a reasonable estimate of the contribution of mass transport effects due to the carbon fabric current collectors is made along with in situ CO stripping experiments on membrane electrode assembly (MEA) anode surfaces. The analysis shows that, at present, serious compromises are required if reasonable energy and power densities are to be simultaneously maintained in DMFCs using Nafion™ 117 as an electrolyte. This paper will point out the critical areas of research and breakthroughs that will be needed if DMFC portable fuel cells are to be commercialized.

11:50 Smart Fuel Cell: Commercializing the Advanced DMFC Technology
Manfred Stefener, CEO, Smart Fuel Cell GmbH, Germany
Smart Fuel Cell (SFC) is a technology leader in DMFC technology. SFC is first-to-market and is already commercializing significant volumes in the leisure, traffic and telemetry market. SFC took one of the major hurdles for the marketing of fuel cells by establishing the first infrastructure for distribution of methanol cartridges. SFC shows high development speed and is concentrating on rapid miniaturization of fuel cell systems and was able to demonstrate several advanced prototypes in 2002. SFC will start to commercialize products with several partners in the consumer electronic industry in the first half of 2003. This talk will focus on the technological background of the superior performance of Smart Fuel Cell systems, the path into a widespread fuel infrastructure and the marketing
strategies for Smart Fuel Cell products.

12:25 Lunch on Your Own

1:55 Chairperson’s Remarks
James M. Fenton, PhD, Professor of Chemical Engineering, Associate Director, Environmental Research Institute, Dept Chemical Engineering, University of Connecticut

2:00 Small Diffusion Driven Fuel Cells
Robert G. Hockaday, President, Energy Related Devices, Inc.; Chief Fuel Cell Scientist, Manhattan Scientifics, Inc.
Micro fuel cells are small enough to run with diffusion of reactants and products. Diffusion mechanisms lead to a variety of fuel cell systems that are unique. We have developed a direct methanol fuel cell that has run continuously on a series of diffusion ampoules in our lab for over a year. Examples of diffusion ampoule fuel delivery devices for methanol and hydrogen delivery systems will be presented.

2:35 Portable Fuel Cell Systems - From Modeling to Production Technology
Christopher Hebling, PhD, Head of Energy Technology Dept, Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems, Germany
Simple system architecture and a high power density at a reliability level comparable to batteries are tough targets for miniaturized fuel cell systems. This is mainly due to the fact that peripheral components such as pumps, pressure reducers, humidifiers or cooling circuits should be avoided both due to the weight and volume restrictions as well as the economical boundary conditions. We perform extended modeling aiming at a control algorithms for a stable performance at high power densities. The designed and realized systems are optimized in parallel in terms of mass producibility and automated assembly of the various parts.

3:10 Refreshment Break, Exhibit/Poster Viewing

3:30 Direct Liquid Fuel Cell Power Pack
Gennadi Finkelshtain, General Manager, More Energy Ltd., Israel
A unique technology of the Direct Liquid Fuel Cells for portable applications developed by More Energy Ltd. will be presented. An operating prototype of a Power Pack will be demonstrated. The Power Pack is capable of simultaneous charging a fully discharged PDA or cell phone battery and, at the same time, operating the device. This talk will include a discussion of the key technical parameters of the system based on the actual test results.

4:05 Micro Solid Oxide Fuel Cell
Partho Sarkar, PhD, Ceramic Engineering Group Leader, Advanced Materials Business Unit, Alberta Research Council, Canada*
The Alberta Research Council Inc. (ARC) is developing Tubular Micro Solid Oxide Fuel Cell (µSOFC). Small diameter SOFC has two main potential advantages, substantial increase in the electrolyte surface area per unit volume of a stack and quick start up. Since fuel cell power is directly proportional to the electrolyte surface area, a µSOFC stack has high potential to substantially increase the power per unit volume. Simple calculation shows a decrease of tube diameter from 22 mm to 2 mm will increase the electrolyte surface area in a stack at least seven times. Due to its thin wall, a µSOFC has extremely high thermal shock resistance and low thermal mass. These low thermal mass and high thermal shock resistance haracteristics are fundamental to reducing start up and turn off time for the SOFC system. Presentation will describe fabrication, microstructure and electrochemical characteristics of µSOFC.
*In collaboration with: H.Rho, Alberta Research Council, Canada

4:40 New Systems and Technologies for Micro-Fuel Cell in Japan
Kiyoshi Kanamura, PhD, Professor, Dept Applied Chemistry, Tokyo Metropolitan Univeristy, and
Yohtaro Yamazaki, PhD, Professor, Dept Innovative & Engineered Materials, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Japan
Micro-fuel cell has been extensively investigated as portable power sources for various electronic devices, especially for mobile phone and computer, in Japan. Materials for micro-fuel cell have not been only developed, but also new systems have been proposed. In this paper, current status of fuel technologies and development of new systems in Japan will be reviewed and new materials for micro fuel cell, such as new membrane electrolyte, new fabrication process of membrane electrode assembly, will be discussed.

5:15 Selected Oral Poster Presentations & Discussion
Facilitator James M. Fenton

5:45 Closing Remarks. End of Conference

Call for Posters

Industry and academic scientists are encouraged to submit poster titles for this event. One-page abstracts (8 1/2" x 11" with 1-inch margins) must be submitted no later than April 16, 2003 for inclusion in conference documentation. Additional poster submissions will be accepted until May 1, 2002 but may not be included in conference documentation.

Note: If you're submitting a poster, you MUST be registered and paid registration fee plus posterboard reservation fee in advance to ensure that a posterboard is reserved for you.

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