One of the nation’s foremost authorities on air quality for the second time has endorsed the fuel cell products made by UTC Power in South Windsor.
The South Coast Air Quality Management District, or AQMD, in southern California decided to replace its 18-year-old fuel cell made by UTC Power with a newer model manufactured by the United Technologies Corp. subsidiary.
AQMD was formed in 1976 to deal with the smog problem around Los Angeles and is today responsible for regulating sources of air pollution for the counties of Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Riverside, and Orange. The organization is considered a national leader in reducing air emissions.
The district first bought a UTC Power fuel cell in 1994 – a PureCell System Model 200 – and ran it for more than 50,000 hours. In November, AQMD decided to replace it with a PureCell System Model 400.
The fuel cell will provide power to AQMD’s headquarters without producing air emissions as it produces electricity through an electrochemical process involving hydrogen and oxygen. AQMD’s fuel cell will also capture the waste heat produced in the electrochemical process and repurpose it to heat and cool the facility.
The new unit will be installed and operational in mid-2013.
