NextEnergy has begun
construction on phases 3 and 4 of its Alternative Fuel Platform on its
Detroit campus. The work is $785,000 of a $4 million 5-phase project
that will enable the organization to produce, refine, test and dispense
hydrogen fuel.
The current construction, which is expected to
be complete by May, will build a permanent hydrogen storage facility
and a 5-bay testing platform—phases 3 and 4, respectively. NextEnergy's
Dave McLean explains that the testing platform is "flexible in order to
accommodate a lot of equipment we might see in coming years."
The
first equipment to be tested there will be a methanol-hydrogen reformer
that can convert liquid methanol to ultra-high purity hydrogen that can
be used in fuel cell vehicles. Throughout the coming year, NextEnergy
will test the reformer; the fine-tuning that results from that testing
will produce the next generation reformer that will be delivered in
March 2008 as the fifth and final phase of the project.
Phase
1, a temporary hydrogen storage facility, will be decommissioned after
construction of the permanent one. Phase 2 is a BP hydrogen fueling
station (pictured) currently used in Daimler Chrysler fuel cell vehicles driven by
the Wayne State University police department. Mclean hopes to see the
number of fleet vehicles using the pump ncrease over time.
The
construction of the Alternative Fuel Platform was cost-shared by Next
Energy and the US Department of Energy. Detroit’s DeMaria Construction
was hired to build all four phases.
Source: Dave McLean, NextEnergy
Image courtesy NextEnergy
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