Morphic Technologies subsidiary, Cell Impact AB, has today received a substantial test order for fuel cell plates from a US manufacturer. The plates will be used for fuel cells in laptop computers. A positive result of the evaluation will lead to an opportunity for mass production within the fiscal year 2007/08.
Cell Impact has today received an order for a large number of flow plates for fuel cells. The customer is a US sub-supplier for, among others, the computer hardware industry.
“The battery-powered laptops of today could soon be history. The development within fuel cells is making rapid progress, and portable electronic applications are leading the way. We believe that the broad consumer market introduction of fuel cells will happen first for computers, cameras, cell phones and other portable electronics. Because of that, this order is of significant importance for us and for the whole industry”, says Martin Valfridsson, CEO of Cell Impact AB.
In a fuel-cell system, electricity is produced by a controlled reaction between hydrogen or methanol and oxygen. The potential for fuel cells is huge, due to the virtually non-existent impact on the environment combined with superior energy efficiency.
The most obvious benefit from fuel cells in laptops is the increased operating time compared to conventional batteries. When running out of power, the fuel-cell laptop is also refilled instantly instead of the time-consuming battery recharging.
The flow plates will be delivered early summer followed by tests and evaluation.