Fuel cells

Solid oxide fuel cells: Building on a foundation in materials chemistry and ceramic processing, Battelle-Korea's network of scientists are advancing the underlying chemical, electrical, and electrochemical mechanisms of solid-oxide fuel cell stacks to improve their efficiency and reduce their cost. Our research and development efforts address materials and manufacturing, modeling, and simulation, fuel reformation, and thermal management. As part of the U.S. Department of Energy's Solid State Energy Conversion Alliance (www.seca.doe.gov), a collaboration with U.S. industry and universities focused on developing efficient, cost-effective solid oxide fuel cells, our experts are working to create a solid oxide fuel cell (3-10 kW) that can be mass produced in modular form. Used individually or in clusters to deliver the required amount of energy, these fuel cells could be used for transportation, stationary, or military applications.

PEM fuel cells: Battelle-Korea can access scientists who are using expertise in microtechnology to develop fuel processing systems for proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cells. This technology has already yielded a compact steam reformer that can produce large amounts of hydrogen-rich gas from a liquid fuel in a matter of seconds.

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Renewable energy

Battelle-Korea scientists are supporting the transition to a greater use of renewable resources for government and industry. As part of developing a roadmap for use of renewable resources for the U.S. Department of Defense, we helped the U.S. Air Force assess the potential for purchasing electricity from renewable resources, as well as on-site electricity generation from, solar, wind, and geothermal resources. Our work in solar energy includes research with promising thin films that have modifiable electronic properties, low mass, and large surface area. Our research supports both direct light-to-electrical conversion and conversion via intermediaries such as hydrogen and other chemical feedstocks.

Bioproducts

We have been involved in bioproducts research since the mid-1970s, developing and applying novel thermal, chemical, and biological processes to convert biomass to industrial and consumer products, fuels, and energy. The hallmark of our research has been novel catalytic processes that convert sugars and organic acids to much higher value commodity and specialty chemicals. These products typically have a higher market value than biomass-derived fuel or energy, and the current worldwide marketplace is very promising. The revenues from selling bio-based products and chemicals help make biofuels economical.

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Nuclear system safety and life extension

Battelle-Korea's network of scientists has world-class expertise in radiation materials science and understanding of stress corrosion cracking in reactor core components. Much of our work in this area involves working with commercial nuclear power plant operators around the world to ensure that nuclear reactors can continue to operate safely and to extend their years of operation. We conduct studies that include modeling from the atomistic scale to the mesoscale and experiments to understand damage mechanisms.

Energy conversion systems

With broad capabilities in catalysis, chemical processing, and material science, our scientists are looking at ways to make energy conversion systems more efficient and less harmful to the environment. For example, we are currently exploring gasification processes that could be used to convert coal resources into liquid transportation fuels. We also have considerable experience with emission reduction technologies for vehicles, including award-winning technology for reducing emissions from diesel engines. In other projects, we are using nanoscale materials to create thermoelectric devices to harvest and recover waste heat from diesel and gasoline engines, exhaust systems, and industrial processes such as glass, aluminum, and chemical manufacturing.

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Energy consortium

Battelle leads the FutureGen Alliance (www.futuregenalliance.org) a non-profit consortium of some of the largest coal producers and users in the world that was formed to partner with the U.S. Department of Energy on the US $1 billion FutureGen project. As the world's first coal-fueled, "zero emissions" power production facility, the FutureGen plant will use cutting-edge technologies to generate electricity while capturing and permanently storing carbon dioxide in geological formations. The plant will also produce hydrogen and byproducts for use by other industries. The active role of industry in this project ensures that the public and private sector share the cost and risk of developing the advanced technologies necessary to commercialize the FutureGen concept.

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