BOSTON, Dec. 16, 2004 – Dr. Michael C. Kimble, President and Founder of Skyhaven Systems, LLC (formerly MicroCell Technologies, LLC) delivered a technical paper at the Army’s International Soldier Systems Conference 2004 held in Boston, MA. This talk entitled “Hydrogen Capture or Utilization in Mg/Fe Based Chemical Heaters,” was presented in the Warrior Power symposium reflecting on-going and patent pending development work at Skyhaven Systems, LLC on alkaline fuel cell technology.

Abstract

The Unitized Group Ration – Express (UGR-E) is a disposable, compact, self-contained module that provides a complete, hot meal for 18 warfighters. The UGR-E contains four shelf-stable polymeric food trays that are coupled to four magnesium based chemical heaters. With the pull of a tab, the food is heated within 45 minutes. Unfortunately, upon activation, the magnesium based heaters release a hydrogen gas by-product. Given that 400 g of heater material is needed for the UGR-E, the amount of released hydrogen gas (approximately 11 cubic feet) is formidable and could pose a safety risk if the lower explosive limit is exceeded. To address this problem, a lightweight, affordable, and disposable alkaline fuel cell (AFC) has been developed based on a flexible micro-tubular design. With this approach, the released hydrogen gas is consumed within the fuel cell to produce electricity and heat that may be used to further heat the UGR-E.

To obtain a full copy of this paper, click here:
M.C. Kimble et al, “Hydrogen Capture or Utilization in Mg/Fe Based Chemical Heaters,” Proceedings of the International Soldier Systems Conference, Boston, MA Dec. (2004).

Contact Info:

Michael C. Kimble, Ph.D.

Skyhaven Systems, LLC
mkimble@skyhavensystems.com