WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has awarded more than $3 million to Connecticut-based FuelCell Energy for a development project to enhance the performance, increase the lifespan, and decrease the cost of stationary fuel cells being used for distributed generation and combined heat and power (CHP) applications.

With support from the DOE, the private sector and the department’s national laboratories have been able to reduce costs and improve the performance of fuel cell technologies. Building on this progress, this project will focus on developing an innovative carbonate fuel cell electrolyte matrix, which has the potential to improve cell output and double service life, which will reduce the costs and enhance the market for fuel cells. In addition, the project will look for more opportunities to reduce costs by incorporating manufacturing process improvements.

For more information on DOE’s efforts to develop more affordable, efficient fuel cell technologies, visit the Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy’s Hydrogen and Fuel Cells web page.

Publication date: 4/21/2014 

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