USA: ATP announces 2000 awards

Advanced Battery Technology, Nov 2000

The Department of Commerce's Advanced Technology Program (ATP) announced its fiscal year 2000 awards on October 4. Advanced power and energy projects - batteries, fuel cells, PV, gas turbines - did quite well, capturing about 17% of the awards representing nine new projects for $42 million in total funding with ATP contributing $22 million. In particular, in this new cycle of funding four new battery R&D projects are to be started, requiring $18 million in new money. Seven awards went to small businesses, either for single company projects or as the lead company in an industry joint venture. At least eight universities and four national laboratories are involved as joint venture partners or subcontractors.

Over the past six years ATP has initiated 29 projects in the advanced energy and power area valued at $147 million, with $75 million coming from private industry, matched by $72 million from ATP. Battery and ultracapacitor companies that have been funded by ATP in $73 million of new R&D projects include Quallion, PolyStor, T/J Technologies, Ametek, Ovonic Battery, Ultralife, Eagle Picher, Superior MicroPowders, RBC, PolyPlus, Eveready, PowerStor, USNanocorp, and Maxwell. Following is a summary of the power-related projects:

Safe, Ultra-high Capacity Li-ion Polymer Gel Rechargeable Battery, PolyStor Corp., Livermore, California. Develop a slim, lightweight, rechargeable, lithiumion polymer gel battery, with twice the energy capacity of current technology, that does not require costly external safety circuitry in the cell pack. Requested ATP funds: $2,000K. Estimated project budget: $2,693K.

High Reliability, Safe, Rechargeable Lithium-ion Battery and Battery Management System, Quallion, LLC, Valencia, California. .Develop an advanced, longlasting microminiature battery for implantable medical devices, capable of being recharged from outside of the body with no physical connections, enabling revolutionary treatments for diseases ranging from Parkinson's disease to limbs paralysis. Requested ATP funds: $4,144K. Estimated project budget: $8,457K.

Advanced High Capacity Materials for Rechargeable Lithium Batteries, T/J Technologies, Inc., Ann Arbor, Michigan. Develop a novel tin-based anode material to enable a new class of rechargeable lithium batteries with significantly improved performance and reduced cost. Requested ATP funds: $1,996K. Estimated project budget: $2,800K.

UHMWPE Gel Processing as a New Route for the Production of Lithium-ion Polymer Batteries, AMTEK Research International LLC, Lebanon, Oregon. Develop materials and a continuous, low-cost, high-speed extrusion process for making tri-layer film electrodes and incorporating them into high-performance rechargeable lithium-ion batteries, potentially reducing manufacturing costs by 30 to 40%. Requested ATP funds: $2,000K. Estimated project budget: $4,046K.

Integrated Planar Solid Oxide Fuel Cell Stack Development, ITE Energy Systems, Inc., Wheat Ridge, Colorado. Develop a new generation of low-temperature fuel cells that demonstrate improved efficiency with lower component costs, enabling U.S. industries to compete in a growing global market that could exceed $30 billion. Requested ATP funds: $1,996K. Estimated project budget: $3,983K.

Dual Fuel Catalytic Combustion for Advanced Gas Turbines, Siemens Westinghouse Power Corp., Orlando, Florida; Precision Combustion, Inc., North Haven, Connecticut; and Solar Turbines, Inc., San Diego, California. Develop an innovative two-stage catalytic combustion system for gas turbines that can bum gas or liquid fuels, does not require a pre-burner stage, and burns cleanly with very low nitrogen oxide emissions. Requested ATP funds: $4,291K. Estimated project budget: $8,757 K.

Advancing the Solar Century- Ubiquitous Solar Cell Manufacturing, Evergreen Solar, Inc., Waltham, Massachusetts. Develop a desktop-sized apparatus and a simple method for making inexpensive photovoltaic cells, realizing a large reduction in the cost of generating solar power and accelerating the widespread use of solar cells. Requested ATP funds: $2,000K. Estimated project budget: $3,761K.

Reactive Environment, Pulsed Power, Linear Sputtering Source for Large Area Electronics, Energy Photovoltaics, Inc., Lawrenceville, New Jersey. Develop a novel sputtering source for efficient, large area deposition of thin film materials under difficult conditions, such as a highly reactive environment or temperature sensitive substrate, for manufacturing applications in solar panels, plasma displays, and other areas. Requested ATP funds: $1,196K. Estimated project budget: $1,425 K.

Advanced Electrolytic System for Combined Oxygen Separation and Compression, Praxair, Inc., Tonawanda, New York. Develop manufacturing processes and high pressure components needed for a novel on-site electrolytic system to separate and compress oxygen from air. Requested ATP funds: $1,982K. Estimated project budget: $6,006K.

Details on each of the new projects can be found at www.atp.nist.gov/public_affairs/atp2000/00004050.htm