Jul 22 2008
Neah Power Systems, Inc., a leading developer of fuel cells for military, industrial and consumer portable electronic devices, announced today that it successfully demonstrated a reliable, automated process for bonding their patented porous silicon electrodes to polymeric support frames (“cells”) and generating electrical current for extended periods.
Neah Power flow-tested these cells at nominal fuel cell conditions for more than 72 hours of continuous operation. The company tested packaging materials for compatibility in fuel cell fluids for durations in excess of four months, which resulted in no changes in wetted material.
The cells produced an electrical current for one hour each, totaling three hours. Each frame was tested under a variety of conditions and proven to be stable throughout each test. The company plans to continue reliability testing of the die attach process and materials under accelerated lifetime conditions.
Dr. Todd Stevens, Vice President of Engineering said “Integrating our porous silicon electrodes in polymeric supports was challenging since the adhesive must mechanically bond the parts, form a fluidic seal and resist the effects of thermal cycling. We have developed a robust packaging solution that exhibits long-term stability and is impervious to our fuel cell chemistry. The die-attach process we’ve implemented leverages well-known semiconductor fabrication methods, further enabling cost-effective, high volume manufacturing of our fuel cells.”
Dr. Chris D’Couto, President and CEO of Neah Power Systems said, “We have achieved another key milestone in our transition to commercialization. This high reliability, high volume process should provide extended lifetimes for our fuel cells for both anaerobic and aerobic applications. This milestone, along with various manufacturing relationships we’ve announced recently, enables us to build the products and provide power solutions to our targeted markets.”