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This invention comprises a series of 7 patents and patent applications with various European and Asi
An innovative, formic acid fuel mixture enhanced by a safer and more efficient catalyst yields higher currents and superior performance in portable fuel cells.
This technology is a power converter circuit to convert multiple direct current (dc) inputs to one or more dc outputs. This dc-dc power converter allows its load to be powered by multiple, different sources of various voltage and current levels (such as solar panels, batteries, fuel cells, etc.). This converter has both buck and boost capability.
This invention is a technique that resolves current commutation challenges in various types of ac-ac switching power converters. It also applies to inverters and rectifiers with high-frequency links. Direct ac-ac converters such as matrix converters and cycloconverters benefit from the approach. This technology commutates load current without inserting dead-time into the switching sequence or using large inductors to limit shoot-through current. Both of these prior techniques intrinsically compromise a converter's performance and efficiency.
This fuel cell is an invention of miniature proportions. UIUC researchers have developed the ability to integrate alkaline and mixed-media electrochemistries into microfluidic fuel cells. This technology takes advantage of two well documented phenomena: 1. the high output of alkaline electrochemical reactions; and 2. the reliable, low-maintenance qualities of laminar flow.
Microfluidic alkaline fuel cells eliminate the need for a semi-permeable membrane (PEM) and operate under the unique principles of laminar flow in which substances interact without experiencing turbulent mixing.