With attention focused on large “Green Energy” firms like Solyndra and Beacon Power, who received sweetheart Federal loans and subsidies to the tune of millions of taxpayer dollars only to declare bankruptcy, and the subsequent revelation that President Obama’s financial backers may have received at least 16 Billion dollars in taxpayer loans, it would be easy to overlook a small firm like CellTech Power LLC of Westborough, Massachusetts – the latest, but probably not the last, Obama-subsidized green energy firm to go out of business at the expense of taxpayers and their children.
Created in 2005 and spun off from CellTech Power, Inc. in January 2006, CellTech Power LLC embarked upon an ambitious technology and product development program to apply their patented (and patent-pending) “Liquid Tin Anode (LTA)” to a solid-oxide fuel cell, thereby eliminating the need for a fuel reformer.
In June 2006, courtesy of President Obama’s American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, CellTech received $150,000 as part of 9 Million dollars given to 34 Massachusetts companies, universities, and organizations: An event Senior Senator John Kerry (D-MA) proudly announced. Seven months later they received a direct investment of $500,000 from the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative’s Renewable Energy Trust, a trust funded by a monthly surcharge on the utility bill of residential customers and whose Governing Board was appointed by Gov. Deval Patrick in August, 2008. (Note: In November 2009 the collaborative was folded into the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center).
A 2008 presentation by CellTech (pdf here) suggested that fuel cells with the inventive LTA anode could be powered by virtually any existing solid or liquid hydrocarbon fuel, including propane, diesel fuel, gasoline, JP-8 aviation fuel…even coal! CellTech demonstrated their concept was feasible, and showed promising results from their initial tests.
A July 2009 presentation given at the 10th Annual Solid State Energy Conversion Alliance (SECA) Workshop in Pittsburgh PA (pdf here), described a fuel cell having both lower emissions and a smaller size relative to comparable conventional fuel cells, and up to four times the power density as state-of-the-art lithium batteries: All without needing the extensive and currently incomplete nationwide refilling infrastructures required by “green” vehicles running on hydrogen, compressed natural gas (CNG), or plug-in electricity. CellTech envisioned fuel cells ranging from 100 Watts to 100 Megawatts – perfect for powering individual homes, neighborhoods, automobiles (FYI: The Chevy Volt’s battery capacity is 16 kWh) and pilotless aircraft.
I don’t know what eventually caused their demise: After a presentation in Boston on October 11, 2011 publicly-available information stops. At first blush, their solution appeared to provide an efficient synergism of existing (hydrocarbon) and alternative (fuel cell) technologies – the kind of technology we need as a bridge towards a sound, well-considered and efficient use of all energy forms available. Perhaps they couldn’t solve the technical hurdles (contamination of the yttrium-stabilized zirconia electrolyte being just one) before the taxpayer money dried up. Or, they couldn’t find enough customers, military or commercial, to invest in commercializing their product.
Whatever the reason for their demise, their website no longer exists… along with $650,000 of taxpayer money. The only mention of Celltech Power LL now is an auctioneer’s announcement to sell off their manufacturing and processing equipment to the highest bidder(s). It’s a shame.
Thanks for reading!
