Aspen Products Group, Inc. (APG) announced today the award of a U.S Army STTR (Small Business Technology Transfer) contract to continue development of aluminum hydride-based materials for advanced hydrogen fuel cell generation systems. The novel chemical composition developed in collaboration with the University of Massachusetts, Boston campus, has been shown to deliver pure hydrogen by thermal decomposition at low temperatures. The hydrogen can be released, as needed, using fuel cell waste heat. Further, aluminum hydride possesses a higher hydrogen volumetric density than most thermolytic storage technologies, thereby reducing the size of fuel cell systems for small portable power applications.

Aluminum hydride offers several advantages as a hydrogen generator over the use of high density storage materials such as ammonia borane. Aluminum hydride decomposition yields pure hydrogen without gaseous impurities that may poison fuel cell catalysts. Additionally, the only solid byproduct, aluminum, is non-toxic and easily handled.

The aluminum hydride material developed in the Phase I STTR program possessed a unique microstructure with improved decomposition kinetics. APG and UMass-Boston plan to scale up the production of the material and develop a storage cartridge that can be integrated directly into existing fuel cell systems. In the Phase II program, several cartridges will be delivered to the Army for independent evaluation. Successful completion of this project will result in a hydrogen delivery system that enables longer missions for a given weight or volume, or a lighter or more compact system for a given mission duration.

Aspen Products Group, Inc. is focused on providing high value-added fuel-processing products that will enable the use of fuel cells in transportation, portable, and stationary power applications. APG has conducted a number of fuel cell-related material, process, and hardware development projects funded though industrial, Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR), and other Government grants, and has delivered several integrated logistic fuel processors to the US Army and US Air Force for evaluation.