Hydrogen Energy

Streamlined generator garners profitability, reliability

—by Robert Friedland, senior vice president: products & manufacturing, Proton Energy Systems, Inc. and Tom Ollila, technology development manager, Parker Hannifin Fuel Cell Business Unit

It is one thing to say that the commercialization of fuel cell related technologies will revolutionize numerous industries — and it is another to predict timing. The promise of a hydrogen-based economy has many anticipating the “next big thing.” Yet, there are companies providing it today, not just in the laboratory, but also in industrial applications.

Proton Energy Systems, Wallingford, CT, was founded in 1996 by Robert Friedland, Trent Molter, Larry Moulthrop, and Bill Smith, all formerly of United Technologies, and Chip Schroeder, who came from a utilities background at AES Corporation. There was a general belief, especially in the energy industry, that proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolysis was too expensive to be viable for commercial use. The founders of Proton disagreed, seeing a viable, untapped market with short- and long-term growth prospects as well as an existing base of public domain technology dating back to the 1950s. Today, the company is one of few in the fuel cell technology industry whose products make a margin.

The company’s flagship product is the HOGEN hydrogen oxygen generator, an on-site system that produces ultra-high purity hydrogen gas at process pressure using only electricity and water. System features and benefits include:

• > 99.999% pure hydrogen production

• Compact, simple, plug-in cabinet

• On-demand production, minimizing hydrogen storage requirements

• Elimination of cost and safety issues related to delivery and handling of hydrogen cylinders

• Reliable operation, eliminating run-outs and consequent downtime

The system suits applications requiring a consistent supply of high purity hydrogen, including electric generator cooling, metal heat-treating, semiconductor manufacturing, chemical/pharmaceutical laboratories and production facilities, etc. The generator will also support developing technologies such as hydrogen vehicle refueling, backup power, small-scale energy storage and renewable energy technologies. The product has evolved through multiple design iterations from initial concentration on system performance — the first HOGEN systems, developed back in 1996, were functional but not elegant. They included many discrete components, controllers, and expensive electronics. Subsequent product development has concentrated on system integration, part manifolding, drop-in subassembly development, and cost reduction.

When redesigning HOGEN’s phase separator in late 2001, Proton teamed up with the then newly formed Parker Hannifin Fuel Cell Business Unit, New Britain, CT, which was intended to provide component integration services to the fuel cell industry. The phase separator vessel receives a wet stream of hydrogen from the water electrolyzer stack, separates the water and injects it back into the circulation loop for reuse, then sends the hydrogen gas downstream for drying. In early models, the phase separator was a conglomeration of approximately ten individual components, including tanks, valves, floats and sensors. The original assembly was unsophisticated, labor-intensive, and incorporated a number of possible leak paths via the many fittings and lengths of tubing. Proton recognized that reworking the subsystem could mean cost reduction and increased reliability.

Parker’s engineering team worked to combine the many parts into a single unit. After approximately six months, the prototyping phase resulted in a tested, single drop-in subassembly. Manifolds tie together disparate parts into one housing, eliminating numerous fittings, tubes and excess metal. Reliability has increased as the number of potential leak points has decreased. Moreover, the design minimizes the number of discrete components, thereby reducing inventory and labor-intensity; manufacturing costs dropped over 50%, while system performance increased. A second round of work on the HOGEN is currently on the drawing board for Proton and Parker, continuing to improve simplicity, production and reliability. Working together on commercializing PEM electrolysis technology for industrial applications, these companies are making the “next big thing” a profitable, reliable reality — today.

For more information:
Proton Energy Systems
www.rsleads.com/311df-100

Parker Hannifin Fuel Cell Business Unit
www.rsleads.com/311df-101