SwampFox

Advanced Technology Institute to install fuel cells for backup power at Fort Jackson

Submitted by: John Warner on Jan 27, 2009 at 9:30 am Tagged with: Alternative Energy, Fuel Cells, Hydrogen Source: Advanced Technology Institute

Via the EngenuitySC website
Staff Report, Columbia Regional Business Journal

The Army Corps of Engineers has entered into a cooperative agreement with the Advanced Technology Institute to deploy 10 fuel cell backup power units in three mission-critical applications at Fort Jackson.

The total funding to support the deployment, shared among the partners, is approximately $500,000. Logan Energy of Roswell, Ga., will procure and install the fuel cell equipment.

The U.S. Department of Energy and the S.C. Research Authority — the parent organization of ATI — are also partners in the project.

The project will assess the performance, durability and life cycle costs of commercially available fuel cell technology operating in a backup power application.

The fuel cells will provide backup power to the Fort Jackson telecommunications center, energy monitoring and control facility and emergency services center.

After an 18-month performance monitoring period, the fort will continue to use the fuel cell systems to provide improved reliability, reduced emissions compared with conventional technologies and lower life cycle costs.

The equipment installations also might provide mutually beneficial work force development partnership opportunities between Fort Jackson and nearby Midlands Technical College, which has developed and begun offering a fuel cell technician program.

The project team is working to complete the installations and have the equipment operational in time to showcase this project during the 20th annual National Hydrogen Association Conference, which will be held in Columbia beginning March 30.