The April 2016 issue of the Fuel Cell Technologies Office (FCTO) newsletter includes stories in these categories:
In the News
Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Pathways to Clean Cities: A Stakeholder – Government Dialogue
The Fuel Cell Technologies Office will be taking part in the "Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Pathways to Clean Cities: A Stakeholder – Government Dialogue" on May 20 as part of the annual meeting of the International Partnership for Hydrogen and Fuel Cells in the Economy (IPHE). This event brings together leading industry, academic, and civil society organizations with government representatives working to increase the adoption and integration of clean transportation and energy systems. The meeting will highlight the policy, regulatory, and market drivers for this change; the strategies adopted by cities and utilities, including the use of fuel cells and hydrogen technologies; and the actions needed to support further fuel cell and hydrogen technology deployment to meet sustainability objectives. This symposium builds on the momentum of the historic COP21 agreement and is organized by the IPHE, a government partnership of 17 countries and the European Commission coordinating activities in hydrogen and fuel cells.
Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Student Symposium
A Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Student Symposium for California graduate students is being held on May 17 in Berkeley, California, as part of the annual meeting of the IPHE. Dignitaries from around the world will gather to discuss the latest advances in fuel cell and hydrogen technologies, commercialization initiatives, and opportunities for international collaboration. The meeting will offer attendees the opportunity to learn about the role of the technologies and the growing market for relevant applications, understand the needs and opportunities in the associated workforce, and directly engage with leaders in the academic, government, and private sectors through a series of small-table discussions. Students from applied sciences, engineering, business, policy, marketing, and public affairs are encouraged to attend. Career opportunities will also be discussed. Please RSVP at the IPHE website.
2016 DOE Annual Merit Review and Peer Evaluation Meeting Coming Up in June
The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) 2016 Hydrogen and Fuel Cells Program and Vehicle Technologies Office Annual Merit Review and Peer Evaluation Meeting will be held June 6-10 in the Washington Marriott Wardman Park hotel in Washington, D.C. Register for the event, see a detailed schedule, and get hotel and travel details.
FCTO Attends San Diego Military Community Transition Summit
On Wednesday, April 20, FCTO representatives attended the San Diego Military Community Transition Summit, a hiring fair and summit for service members, veterans, and military spouses. Focused on connecting employers of every size and industry with talented veterans, the summit featured speakers from Naval Base San Diego, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, the U.S. Department of Labor Veterans’ Employment and Training Services, Soldier for Life, the U.S. Department of Defense’s Transition to Veterans Program Office, the U.S. Small Business Administration, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation’s Hiring Our Heroes, and local chambers of commerce. This summit included workshops, panel discussions, a networking reception, and a hiring fair focused on improving competitive employment for service members and veterans. The event was supported by Hiring Our Heroes, a nationwide initiative to help veterans, transitioning service members, and military spouses find meaningful employment opportunities.
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Webinars and Workshops
Webinar April 26: Overview of HyRAM (Hydrogen Risk Assessment Models) Software for Science-Based Safety, Codes, and Standards
FCTO presented a live webinar titled "Overview of HyRAM (Hydrogen Risk Assessment Models) Software for Science-Based Safety, Codes, and Standards" on Tuesday, April 26. The webinar provided an introduction to the new HyRAM research software developed by Sandia National Laboratories and supported by the Office. The HyRAM toolkit was designed to address key barriers to hydrogen infrastructure deployment, including limited access to safety data, lack of models describing hydrogen behavior, and challenges using technical data to revise standards. The HyRAM toolkit integrates state-of-the-art models, methods, and data to provide a common platform for assessing hydrogen safety with validated consequence models and quantitative risk assessment. The resulting information provides a transparent, documented basis to ensure code requirements are consistent, logical, and defensible. HyRAM provides a robust foundation for using science and engineering data to provide a scientific basis for risk-informed codes and standards. HyRAM is being used in the development of National Fire Protection Association and ISO standards for hydrogen fueling stations. See slides of this webinar (recording coming soon).
Visit our website to see webinar archives or workshop presentations.
Studies, Reports, and Publications
Alkaline Membrane Fuel Cell Workshop
The National Renewable Energy Laboratory and Los Alamos National Laboratory hosted the Alkaline Membrane Fuel Cell Workshop on April 1, 2016, in Phoenix, Arizona. Sponsored by FCTO, the workshop brought together experts to share information and identify the current status and research and development needs for alkaline membrane fuel cell technology. See the presentations.
Gas Clean-Up for Fuel Cell Applications Workshop Report Posted
FCTO posted the final report from the Workshop on Gas Clean-Up for Fuel Cell Applications held March 6–7, 2014, in Argonne, Illinois. Sponsored by the FCTO, the workshop was hosted by DOE's Argonne National Laboratory and included participants from industry, academia, national labs, government agencies, and other stakeholders. The objectives of the workshop were to (1) exchange information and (2) discuss research and development needs to reduce the cost and complexity of removing impurities from natural gas, liquefied petroleum gas, biogas, associated petroleum gas, diesel, and biodiesel for fuel cell applications. See the report and presentations from the workshop.
Advanced Water Splitting Materials Workshop at Stanford University
Supported by FCTO, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and Stanford University held a workshop to gather stakeholder input that will be foundational to the establishment of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Energy Materials Network (EMN) consortium that will accelerate the research, development, and deployment of advanced water splitting technologies for renewable hydrogen production. The EMN consortium’s three constituent water splitting technologies included the advanced electrolysis, photoelectrochemical, and solar thermochemical hydrogen production pathways. Scientific experts in these technology areas came together with techno-economic analysis and life-cycle analysis experts to identify key materials metrics and targets essential to commercial viability. Workshop participants also mapped the resources and gaps in state-of-the art materials theory, computation, synthesis, characterization, analysis, and benchmarking tools as a foundation for developing an efficient and impactful advanced water splitting EMN consortium. See the workshop presentations.
Visit our website to access technical information about hydrogen and fuel cells. This information is provided in documents such as technical and project reports, conference proceedings and journal articles, technical presentations, and links to other websites.