Microscale Hydrogen Concentrator and Purifier

"Advancements in technology have created the need for high power density portable power sources. A fuel cell powered by hydrogen derived in-situ from stored liquid hydrocarbon fuel(e.g., JP-8 fuel) represents one of the best solutions to meet this need.Liquid fuel contains sufficient energy density, so that, when coupled with a reformer / fuel cell system, it is a desirable source of fuel for portable power.A fuel cell/reformer system includes liquid fuel storage, a reformer to produce hydrogen gas from the liquid fuel, a hydrogen purifier to remove carbon monoxide from the hydrogen stream, and a fuel cell stack. Each element is critical for an operatingsystem that can provide 20 watts of power and has an energy density in excess of 1 kWh/kg.SeQual Technologies, Inc. proposes to develop a micro-scale hydrogen purifier to be used with a man-portable power system. The hydrogen purifier will operate a pressure swing adsorption (PSA) cycle that will both enrich the hydrogen concentration to near100% and remove carbon monoxide. The proposed PSA system will weigh less than 150 grams and require less than 1 watt of parasitic power. In addition to the field portable power unit applications, the micro-PSA systems will be useful for several industrial applications ranging from small portable power units for recreational vehicles to power systems for portable electronics. Thetechnology developed under this program will also be useful in min