Nuvera Fuel Cells Inc. (Cambridge, MA) announced thst its Substrate Transportation Autothermal Reformer (STAR™) fuel processor completed acceptance testing at Argonne National Lab (ANL). The technology, which is being developed in conjunction with the US Department of Energy (DOE) as part of the government's FreedomCAR and Hydrogen Fuel Initiative, met or exceeded performance requirements for system size, power, efficiency and gas purity required for proton-exchange membrane fuel cells.
The STAR fuel processor, which has been under development for the past four years, is a revolutionary technology in terms of size and operation, and represents a significant step forward for onboard hydrogen generation for fuel cell vehicles. During recent tests conducted at ANL, the 75 L fuel processor converted up to 200 kW/h of gasoline into a stream of hydrogen containing less than 10 ppm of carbon monoxide, yielding up to 2.1 kW/h of hydrogen per liter.
The results support Nuvera's claim for high power density for an onboard fuel processor capable of powering a fuel cell vehicle. Onboard fuel processors such as STAR will enable fuel cell vehicles to operate on gasoline, among other hydrocarbon fuels, which addresses a critical link in the supply chain.
