IMPCO Announces Breakthrough in Hydrogen Storage Technology
10 November 1999
IMPCO Announces Breakthrough in Hydrogen Storage Technology for Automotive IMPCO TECHNOLOGIES LOGO IMPCO Technologies logo. (PRNewsFoto)[DM] CERRITOS, CA USA 09/21/1999
CERRITOS, Calif., Nov. 10 -- IMPCO Technologies, Inc.
announced today a major breakthrough in hydrogen storage
technology for automotive applications. IMPCO's proprietary, advanced
Hydrogen storage cylinder technology removes the barriers to more rapid
commercialization of hydrogen powered internal combustion engines and fuel
cells.
(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/19990921/IMPCOLOGO )
This new, ultra light-weight, low cost Hydrogen storage technology
addresses the barriers relating to permeability; diffusion of the hydrogen
fuel through the storage cylinder side wall, and the effects of hydrogen
embrittlement on metal storage cylinders.
Developed at IMPCO's Advanced Technology Center in Irvine, California, the
IMPCO advanced composite hydrogen storage cylinder provides a dramatic weight
reduction, increased fuel storage capacity, and the capability to produce a
wide range of sizes from thermos bottle size to 20+ feet long. With a 5000
psi operating pressure and a designed hydrostatic failure pressure of 14,000
psi, IMPCO's advanced storage cylinder technology offers an unparalleled
degree of safety. The cylinder has also been designed to incorporate IMPCO's
NGR5000 In-Tank Regulator, which reduces the pressure at the cylinder, thereby
reducing the pressure of the fuel lines throughout the vehicle, which reduces
overall fuel system cost and increases safety.
Features of IMPCO's Hydrogen storage technology:
-- Application: Direct Hydrogen Storage- Internal Combustion Engine
Direct Hydrogen Storage - Fuel Cell Vehicles
-- Size Capability: Variable (up to 20+ feet long)
-- Service Press: 5000 psi
-- Burst Press: 14,000 psi
-- In-Tank
Regulator: IMPCO NGR 5000
Syed Hussain, Vice President and General Manager of IMPCO's Technology and
Automotive OEM Division said: "This breakthrough technology is the first in a
series of advanced fuel system technologies enabling a global transition to a
hydrogen based economy."
"The IMPCO fuel storage tank provides unparalleled safety and reliability
through optimum use of materials, design and manufacturing processes.
Enhanced safety features include a unique flexible liner system that is
leak-resistant and reliable even at low-temperature-extremes: a corrosion and
fatigue-resistant structural shell: and a hard external shell that is
resistant to mechanical damage. This is also a cost-effective fuel storage
option, with a projected price comparable to that of steel tanks, depending on
tank-size and purchase volume. Pricing is forecasted to be significantly
lower than that of any currently available storage cylinder technologies."
For more information on IMPCO's advanced fuel system technologies, please
contact: Alan Niedzwiecki, Director, and Sales & Marketing @ Tel:
(949) 399-4552.
IMPCO is the global leader to the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM)
market and aftermarket in supplying fuel management and storage systems and
components that allow internal combustion engines and other propulsion systems
to operate on alternative fuels such as natural gas, propane, ethanol,
methanol and hydrogen used in fuel cells. IMPCO produces systems for motor
vehicles, forklifts, and other material handling equipment and small portable
to large stationary engines.
Certain matters discussed in this press release contain forward-looking
information that involves risks and uncertainties that could cause actual
results to differ materially from current trends. These include growth of the
alternative fuels market, competition, the company's ability to design and
market new fuel management products, the company's ability to meet Original
Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) specifications, and other such risks as cited in
the company's 1999 annual report on Form 10-K and other documents filed with
the Securities and Exchange Commission.