Fideris, HTceramix demo SOFC R&D platform U S-based Fideris, a leading provider of innovative fuel cell test solutions, teamed up with HTceramix, a leading Swiss commercial SOFC stack provider, to unveil an SOFC research and development platform at the recent Hannover Fair in Germany.
While SOFC systems are highly efficient and have significant promise in highly profitable markets, their high operating temperatures have made testing and validation difficult. The turnkey system demonstrated by Fideris and HTceramix will allow researchers to install an SOFC system in approximately 4 h. The unit shown in Hannover featured an HTceramix five-cell SOFC stack and a Fideris test system. The integrated turnkey system includes Fideris FCPowerβ’ software, an advanced software package that allows plug-and-play simplicity with a user-friendly graphical interface. Customers can augment the system with equipment from either Fideris or other suppliers. Customers can add analytical instruments, water chillers, dewpoint measurement devices and other components to an existing Fideris test system without software modifications. In addition, the software provides continuous data logging into a single data file, significantly aiding data analysis.
'The SOFConnexβ’-based stack uses a unique approach for stacking ceramic fuel cells,' explains Olivier Bucheli, managing director of HTceramix. 'By integrating our SOFC system with a Fideris test system, we have created a turnkey solution that will help us move this technology into the hands of potential partners and researchers.' Fideris (formerly Lynntech Industries) and HTceramix will jointly market this platform to universities, research labs, technical schools and potential end-users of SOFCs. The companies expect to continue their collaboration by developing advanced measurement solutions such as impedance spectroscopy for cell and stack quality assurance.