The Core

Cella’s production process takes a material with one of the highest useable hydrogen contents by weight, and turns it into a hi-tech composite by incorporating polymer. The material forms a microporous plastic-like solid which can be pressed, shaped or extruded into any form and to fit any space. The material production uses commercially scalable methods and Cella is currently capable, through toll manufacture, of making many tons of the material per year.

Each gram of Cella material produces up to 1 litre of hydrogen gas, giving it a very high specific energy (energy per unit weight), making it ideal in mobile or portable applications where weight is crucial. The material can be packaged into a cartridge that, combined with a fuel cell, has two to three times the specific energy of a lithium-ion battery, or to make a system comparable to 700 atmosphere compressed hydrogen but without the same safety concerns or cost of infrastructure.

With our proprietary processes, the material can be pelletised to form a solid fuel with fluid properties. This overcomes the challenge of transporting large quantities to filling stations and gives drivers a similar filling experience to the liquid fuels of today. One of the biggest challenges facing the roll-out of hydrogen cars is the investment in high-pressure filling stations. With a fluid-like transport system for Cella fuels, existing pump and tanker technologies can be used with minimal alterations.
Our hydrogen storage technology:

    Does not need high pressure
    Does not need cryogenic temperatures
    Has high specific energy (energy per unit weight)
    Has stability at room temperature
    Can be shaped into any spare volume in a vehicle
    Has no harmful emissions

Technically Cella’s material is based on a chemical hydride which means it has excellent performance but it requires a chemical process to recycle it back to its pristine state.

Our scientists and engineers are working hard with chemical industry partners to take the known recycling methods and scale them into a cost effective industrial process.

The use of Cella material’s in pellet form that can be pumped like a fluid makes it easy to use simple inexpensive pumps, like those used in a vacuum cleaner, to move the material into and out of a vehicle and to transport it by tanker to and from the recycling plant.

At these temperatures, hydrogen extracts oxygen from iron oxide or rust, making water and iron. This is much like charging a battery, where energy is stored in water and iron and can be retained for months without major losses.

In winter months, when energy demand is high, researchers can run hot steam into these reactors. This reverses the process, forming rust and releasing hydrogen gas. The hydrogen can be used to generate electricity in a fuel cell or even burned as fuel to move a turbine.