Adelan Technology

Adelan is a small fuel cell company that develops microtubular solid oxide fuel cell (mSOFC) technology to incorporate into different products.  Potential applications of the technology range from micro combined heat and power (mCHP) in buildings, through auxiliary power units (APUs) for vehicles, to micro stationary and portable systems.  The technology is described in detail in a new book published in 2015 by the Adelan founders Solid Oxide Fuel Cells for the 21st Century: Fundamentals, Design and Applications.

Delivery of portable and mobile power solutions is Adelan’s key strength. Adelan has more than three decades experience in solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC) material performance and degradation analysis, mSOFC integration and system design, and fuel cell demonstration.

mSOFC technology - from materials to system design specifications - is developed and optimised by Adelan, with an aim to commercialise this technology in bespoke applications. Adelan intellectual property is related to mSOFC systems, materials processing, SOFC testing and using various fuels, including hydrocarbons.

Adelan produced many demonstrators over the years, including a mCHP unit in 1997 and 2000, including the first portable rapid starting SOFC fuelled by butane in 1998 as described in the Journal of Power Sources.

The key to future commercialisation of fuel cells is reducing the costs of production so that fuel cell products are cost-competitive with existing technologies.  To this end, the project focuses on reducing manufacturing costs through materials and production engineering innovations.