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PRESS RELEASES
POLYFUEL RECEIVES $2 MILLION
GRANT FROM THE NAMTIONALINSTITUTE OF STANDARDS AND TECHNOLOGY
FOR FUEL CELL R & D
Grant Helps PolyFuel Expand its Product Portfolio
and Accelerate Fuel Cell Market Introduction
MOUNTAIN VIEW,
Calif. – September 10, 2003 – PolyFuel, a leading provider
of fuel cell membrane technology for portable applications today
announced that it has been awarded a $2 million grant from the
National Institute of Standards and Technology's Advanced Technology
Program. PolyFuel will use the funds to develop a next-generation
fuel cell gas diffusion layer to be combined with its membrane
technology for portable fuel cell applications.
The National Institute of Standards and Technology's Advanced
Technology Program awards finance leading-edge research projects
that are ahead of current technology developments. Additionally,
these projects must demonstrate tremendous economic and commercial
promise, providing a viable solution to one or several global
industries. The awards are granted on the basis of peer-reviewed
projects that best qualify in the areas of technological ideas,
potential economic benefits and the likelihood of commercialization.
PolyFuel's innovative membrane is based on more than 14 years
of research and development at SRI International, one of the
world's leading research facilities. Specifically designed for
methanol fuel cell systems, the PolyFuel membrane delivers substantial
performance and system cost advantages over both traditional
lithium ion batteries and other competing fuel cell membrane
technologies. .
- Lower methanol and water crossover
- Stable in high levels of methanol concentration
- Storage, start-up and operation in sub-freezing
temperatures
- Smaller, lighter and quieter than systems made with
competing membranes
"Winning the National Institute
of Standards and Technology award provides PolyFuel with the
funding to expand into the development of a promising next-generation
gas diffusion layer," said Jim Balcom, President and Chief
Executive Officer of PolyFuel. "This new gas diffusion technology,
when combined with the PolyFuel membrane will ensure the rapid
introduction of portable fuel cells in numerous applications.
This peer-reviewed award is a significant validation of the
technology leadership position that PolyFuel has achieved
with its breakthrough membrane technology."
About PolyFuel
Direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) systems with their hot swappable
fuel cartridges will satisfy consumer demands for longer runtimes
in numerous portable devices such as laptop computers. PolyFuel's
patented membrane will enable DMFC systems to be smaller,
lighter, quieter, less expensive and more robust than systems
made with competing membrane materials. PolyFuel also has
world-class fuel cell systems technology as evidenced by its
prototypes developed for cell phones and laptop computers.
This systems expertise, which provides the company with critical
real-world direction for the development of its membrane technology,
is also available as a service for customers seeking support
for the integration of the PolyFuel membrane in their systems.
Spun out from SRI in 1999 and based in Mountain View, Calif.,
PolyFuel is privately held and venture-funded by Mayfield,
Ventures West, Technology Partners, Intel Capital, and Chrysalix
Energy. For more information, please visit www.polyfuel.com
www.polyfuel.com or call (650)
429-4700.
About ATP
The ATP provides cost-shared funding to industry-led teams
which can include non-profits and universities to help advance
particularly challenging, high-risk R&D projects that have
the potential to spark important, broad-based economic or
social benefits for the United States. The program supports
projects that industry cannot fully fund on its own because
of significant technical risks. ATP awards are made on the
basis of rigorous, competitive peer review of the scientific
and technical merit of each proposal. The program accelerates
enabling technology research, but does not support product
development work. Further information about ATP is available
at www.atp.nist.gov.
PolyFuel Public Relations Contact:
Christian DeNike
Prequent Inc.
(408) 307-1236
christian@prequent.com
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