About FCTec

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About the FCTec

Background

The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) Fuel Cell Test and Evaluation Center (FCTec) is a facility for the independent, unbiased testing and validation of fuel cell systems for both military and commercial applications. Located at Concurrent Technologies Corporation’s (CTC’s) Environmental Technology Facility, in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, the FCTec was established in 1999 through a collaborative effort between CTC and the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center’s Construction Engineering Research Laboratory (ERDC-CERL), the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ R&D organization. CTC operates the FCTec with Government direction given by ERDC-CERL.

The FCTec’s initial focus was to accelerate the development and commercialization of stationary fuel cell systems through test and evaluation (T&E) services. Since its inception, the FCTec has been recognized as a premier test and demonstration facility for fuel cell systems for both military and commercial applications.

The FCTec's initial objectives included:

Validating prototype, pre-commercial, and commercial fuel cell systems and components
Evaluating design and off-design operating characteristics of fuel cell systems
Enhancing the performance of fuel cell technologies
Reducing life-cycle costs for fuel cell systems
Supporting the development of codes and standards for military and commercial fuel cell applications
Educating stakeholders regarding fuel cell technologies and applications
Serving as a demonstration site for fuel cell technologies.

Advancing from Fuel Cell T&E to Alternative Power & Energy RDT&E

CTC and ERDC-CERL are now working together to focus on developing energy solutions and will use the FCTec’s capabilities and services to address the issues related to the research, development, test and evaluation (RDT&E) of alternative power and energy (P&E) systems. The FCTec’s future RDT&E activities will be focused on the following P&E areas:

Alternative and sustainable fuels (renewable generation, delivery, storage and consumption, including biomass)
Distributed Generation (DG) technologies (including conventional and renewable technologies, their performance and operational characteristics)
Microgrid installations (evaluation, installation, monitoring and control)
Portable power systems
Energy storage
Combined heat and power (including heating, ventilating and air conditioning and waste heat utilization)
Energy systems (DG operation and support, DG interconnection, emissions, fuel efficiencies, control, monitoring status and maintenance)
Power conditioning and distribution
Load characterization, management and curtailment.

Significant Industry Accomplishments

The FCTec has established credibility with many developers and end users within the fuel cell industry. FCTec’s significant accomplishments to date towards the advancement of stationary fuel cell systems include:

Development of DoD applications test protocols for distributed generation, residential and telecommunication-sized fuel cell systems
Test and validation of design and off-design operating modes, alternative fuels, and advanced prototype components and subsystems on a 200 kW Phosphoric Acid Fuel Cell (PAFC)
Design enhancements and the development of manufacturing drawings for a fuel processor system for use with a 50 kW Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell (PEMFC)
Design, integration, operation, and testing of an advanced fuel processing system for a major fuel cell developer
Design, development, test, and validation of advanced integrated components to improve system performance and durability and decrease operational cost of fuel cell systems for transportation applications
Test and validation of seven different fuel cell systems designed for telecommunication and uninterrupted power supply (UPS) application
Test and validation of several fuel cell systems designed for residential applications
Test and validation of a 250 kW Molten Carbonate Fuel Cell (MCFC) system operating on dual fuel (natural gas and propane).

FCTec Industry Firsts

The FCTec is recognized for several industry “firsts” on hybrid fuel cell vehicles. For example, the FCTec designed and developed the first practical application of fuel cells in aviation support equipment for the U.S. Air Force—the 110,000-pound, towbarless aircraft tow vehicle. The tow vehicle’s stock electric drive train was left untouched and the original batteries were replaced with a 12 kW fuel cell system, a 72 volt DC battery bus, DC-DC power conditioning and a 400 Hz 120 Volt AC power inverter. The 12 kW fuel cell system supplies power to the battery augmented electric drive system. The towing capabilities of the vehicle remain identical to the stock configuration and distributed 400 Hz power enhances the functionality of the platform. In addition, the FCTec recently completed the first design and integration of an Air Force MB-4 Aircraft Tow Vehicle. Powered by a hydrogen fuel cell and capable of towing a 175,000-pound aircraft, the vehicle will be used daily at Hickham AF base in Hawaii. The vehicle’s drive train has been modified from its original diesel engine powered mechanical drive to a fuel cell/battery hybrid electric drive. The 65 kW fuel cell system supplies power to the battery-augmented electric drive system. The towing capabilities of the vehicle remain identical to the stock configuration and distributed power enhances the functionality of the platform.

The 110,000-pound, towbarless aircraft tow vehicle

The FCTec integrated a 700-watt PEMFC into the first-of-its-kind battery powered Segway™ hybrid vehicle for human transport. The base unit of this hybrid configuration is a standard Segway HT e Series model. The power system consists of a 700 W PEMFC fueled with compressed hydrogen. The fuel cell extends the driving range by recharging the batteries and providing power to the Segway drive motors during the fuel cell’s operation.