LIVERMORE, Calif., 6 June 2006. UltraCell Corporation, a manufacturer of micro fuel cells for portable power, has received a contract award from the U.S. Army Communications-Electronics Research, Development, and Engineering Center's (CERDEC) Army Power Division to accelerate development of the XX25, a 25-watt reformed methanol fuel cell, for use as a soldier power device.
The contract will drive advanced system design for the UltraCell unit to operate in extreme operating temperatures, and withstand severe shock and vibration, and meet other Mil-Spec requirements.
The XX25 has up to a 75 percent weight advantage over current military rechargeable batteries, based on a 72-hour mission at 20 watts.
UltraCell's methanol micro fuel cell systems, including the XX25, are able to run a ruggedized laptop computer for up to three working days on a single fuel cell cartridge. It will run other portable electronic devices for emergency responders, operating off simple and inexpensive methanol cartridges. The XX25 can also be configured with large volumes of fuel for weeks of runtime in stationary applications, such as remote video monitoring
UltraCell's patented reformed methanol fuel cell (RMFC) system internally generates fuel-cell-ready hydrogen from a concentrated methanol solution.
