Plug Power Inc. (Latham, NY) and Albany NanoTech (ANT, Albany, NY) announced a joint research and development partnership aimed at integrating nanotechnology and proton-exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell technologies for enhanced catalyst performance of fuel cell electrodes.
The projected five-year, $5.0 million program will seek to develop and build the next-generation fuel cell catalyst nanostructures to atomically engineer and customize the baseline performance of PEM fuel cell membrane electrode assemblies. The partnership is one of the first in the world to explore the incorporation of nanostructured materials for use in fuel cell applications. Results from this project will help Plug Power decrease system costs while increasing performance and enhancing reliability of the fuel cells.
"The eventual application of nano-structured fuel cell electrode designs will raise the fuel cell industry performance bar to the next plateau," said John Elter, Plug Power vice president of research and systems architecture. "The goal of the project aligns with Plug Power's current mission to continue to reduce costs for our fuel cell systems while increasing performance. Plug Power is extremely excited about the opportunities provided by our partnership with Albany NanoTech."
