LONDON — H Power Corp. reports that it recently shipped PEM fuel cell systems, in conjunction with its marketing partner — Mitsui & Co., Ltd., to a Japanese study focused on providing alternatives to on-board railway diesel engines, according to a report from the website, EyeForFuelCells.com.
The goals of the study are to improve energy efficiencies, lower noxious emissions and reduce noise pollution.
The Japanese government funded project is being conducted by the Railway Technology Research Institute, the research & development division of the Japanese National Railways Group, and Suzuki Shokan Co., Ltd., a leading supplier of industrial machinery and gases.
H Power Corp. provided four 7kW PEM fuel cell systems for the initial phase of the study for integration into prototype railway power applications.
Mr. Takamitsu Yamamoto, Senior Researcher for Electric Drive Systems, Vehicle Control Technology Division of the Railway Technical Research Institute commented, “After meeting with several fuel cell development companies, we selected H Power based upon the breadth of their experience in developing the required technology as well as their demonstrated leadership within the industry.”
Dr. H. Frank Gibbard, CEO of H Power Corp. said, “We are delighted to have been chosen as one of the primary technology providers for this important project, aimed at improving the quality of life for Japanese railway users. This project builds on our experience in providing direct hydrogen fuel cells to customers who want to integrate them into their applications. Although such projects may have a long timeline to commercialization, they provide immediate opportunities for sales of our existing hydrogen core fuel cell systems.”
In 1987, when the Japanese National Railways (JNR) was privatized and divided into seven Japan Railways (JR) companies, the Railway Technical Research Institute, and the Railway Labor Science Institute, which belonged to the JNR headquarters, merged into one railway research center – the Railway Technical Research Institute (RTRI).
The founding aim of RTRI reflects the management strategies of the JR companies; to develop basic technology and research applications; to promote technology transfer to JR companies; to promote the Maglev (magnetic levitation) system with the technology inherited from JNR; and to study safety measures.