Honey, MTI shrunk the fuel cell

Like semiconductors, candy bars and potato chip snack bags, fuel cells intended for handheld devices are getting smaller all the time.

Albany, New York-based MTI MicroFuel Cells (MTI Micro), a subsidiary of Mechanical Technology Incorporated (NASDAQ: MKTY), was in California last week, brandishing prototypes of its new prototype Mobion® fuel cell chip.

The device, soon to be manufactured in volume, is intended to be integrated into future portable consumer electronics.

OEMs like Samsung and Duracell (owned by Gillette) have begun to work with prototypes of MTI's cell, and at least one more consumer electronic partnership announcement is expected by the end of the year, according to the company.

MTI's Mobion (mobile+'always on') chip integrates a power module with fluid conditioning to allow the system to self-regulate itself, allowing it to run in a wide temperature and humidity range—one of the biggest drawbacks of handheld fuel cells to date.

Photo of MTI Micro's tiny Mobion fuel cell chip >>

Beyond its Lilliputian size, the chip's innovations include internal fluid management.

The device runs without internal pumps, which means low parasitic energy loss, so it can deliver the largest amount of energy possible with its limited fuel, MTI CEO Peng Lim told the Cleantech Group.

The tiny injection molded device captures and recycles water vapor released in the power production process, and even recycles it back to its supply, Lim said.

"It's hard enough to do this in a stationary fuel cell. It's no small achievement to manage fluids in a power supply that's intended to be moved around, and turned every which way," he said.

Further, the chip's patented ability to run on 100 percent undiluted methanol is forcing competitors to use diluted methanol, which negatively affects their power output, according to Lim.

Among others, those competitors include New York-based Medis Technologies (NASDAQ: MDTL), and Neah Power Systems (OTCBB: NPWS) of Seattle, which is pursuing fuel cells for notebook computers and military use (see the Cleantech Group's Real laptop fuel cell power breakthrough?)

MTI's device is now being designed for volume manufacturing—which Lim knows something about.

He served as VP of worldwide product development for Palm Computing in its late 90s heyday, and was VP of engineering at Fujitsu Personal Systems, where he was responsible for pen-based and wireless computers.

"We'll be applying notebook manufacturing techniques to fuel cells for the first time," he said.

Lim is also on the board of directors of prominent Chinese contract manufacturer Inventech, which makes the iPod, Palm and other devices.

But he was coy as to whether Inventech would be making MTI's chip.

MTI claims the Mobion has demonstrated power of over 50 mW/cm² while producing 1.4 Wh/cc of energy from the fuel, which he says is two to three times more power than competitors.

MTI Micro plans to pursue the consumer market with target applications including hand-held communication (read: cell phone) and other power-hungry portable electronic devices.

According to CEO Lim, consumer demand for features from mobile devices is exceeding the capabilities of lithium ion and other technologies' abilities to provide satisfactory run times.

And with features growing all the time, the problem would only get worse, he said.

As of the beginning of Q1 of this year, MTI had $18 million in the bank, an approximately $1 million monthly burn rate and 50 employees.

The company has received limited funding from the U.S. Department of Energy (see Fuel cell maker MTI Micro to get up to $1.8m more from DOE) and has recognized some initial revenues from strategic partners like Samsung, Lim said.

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