FuelCellsWorks

New Initiative Provides Qualified OEMs with a Mobion® Developers Kit for Creating Grid-Free Products Utilizing the Mobion® Direct Methanol Fuel Cell Platform

MTI MicroFuel Cells Inc. (”MTI Micro”), the developer of the Mobion® off-the-grid portable power solution, and a subsidiary of Mechanical Technology, Incorporated (”MTI”) (MKTY) today announced the launch of a Mobion® Developers program for qualified Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM).

The program will provide engineers and product designers at qualified OEMs with a Mobion® Developers Kit including a Mobion® direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) prototype and the tools and information for them to evaluate and quickly understand how to integrate and use the Mobion® platform in their product development efforts.

Expanding on MTI Micro´s current collaboration agreements with major consumer and industrial OEMs across the US, Asia and Europe, the objective of this program is to spur innovation by allowing additional OEMs to better conceptualize, understand and create new products using the Mobion® platform. The program enables OEMs to shorten their time to market with a fuel cell powered product by accelerating the learning curve and cycle time associated with new technology. This also allows OEM design teams to engage in early collaborations with MTI Micro to further refine the core Mobion® technology for specialized applications with the OEM.

Mobion® is an energy generating device that uses DMFC technology. Unlike batteries, which just store energy generated from the power grid, Mobion® is a grid-free power source that converts the energy of methanol, a bio-degradable and renewable fuel, into usable electricity. Designed to be used as a portable power alternative to batteries, the Mobion® fuel cell offers long life operation, light weight, and never needs to be connected to the electric grid to be recharged.

“Micro fuel cell technology provides an incredible value offering that can serve consumers in many areas of their lives,” said Gadi Amit, founder and principal designer for NewDealDesign, a strategic design firm in San Francisco. “MTI Micro´s OEM developers program will serve to help engineers and product design teams to better envision products that can fulfill the potential of this emerging technology, and enable them to bring more ideas for initial products to the table.”

The launch of this developers program is made possible by the level of maturity MTI Micro has achieved in developing the Mobion® platform, which consists of a core modular technology enabling the flexibility required for use with various OEMs operating in varied industries. MTI Micro has also demonstrated a design for replaceable methanol cartridges in its latest prototype announced in December of last year, which facilitates the safe and convenient refueling of the Mobion® fuel cell.

“We are proud to have reached the stage where Mobion® can accommodate the commercialization requirements of many OEMs within different industry segments,” said Jim Frawley, Director of Business Development of MTI Micro. “Our platform has demonstrated a level of scalability which makes it adaptable to various applications. Additionally, our Mobion® device uses 100% methanol as fuel, which ranks as one of the most energy efficient fuels and serves to maximize energy density in a small package.”

The Mobion® Developers Kit will include a Mobion fuel cell system, a monitoring software package, an operation manual that provides step-by-step procedures, and design guideline material. Also included are compact removable methanol cartridges for use in the system providing convenient and easy refueling to run and test the energy efficiency of the product. The kit also provides valuable access to MTI Micro´s expert engineering support team to assist in the design and testing of this grid-free power solution.

With this kit, OEMs can explore the advantages of having green and grid-free power with extended run-time. Through the provided software package, OEMs can monitor and track the fuel cell performance and how the fuel cell operates.

“Battery chemistries have already reached a peak in technology development, and can not keep up with the speed at which portable electronics innovate and integrate new power hungry features. We strongly believe that the widening power gap will be best addressed through the capabilities uniquely offered by micro fuel cell technology, which is now seeing commercialization in its initial stages,” Jim Frawley added.

Jim Prueitt, Vice President of Engineering and Operations and Jim Frawley, Director of Business Development for MTI Micro will be at the 11th Annual Small Fuel Cells 2009 International Conference on May 07, 2009 at 5 p.m. in Orlando, FL. Mr. Prueitt will give a presentation titled, “Performance and Durability of Direct Oxidation Fuel Cells Fed with Neat Methanol,” while Mr. Frawley will be available for demonstrations and discussions with prospective OEMs regarding MTI Micro´s Developers Kit Program.

With 110 patent applications filed with the United States Patent Trademark Office, 49 granted applications and 25 filed international patent applications in a number of different countries including Japan, China, and Korea. MTI Micro has developed a significant intellectual property portfolio in strategic areas of development and has solved fundamental hurdles key to the commercialization of DMFC.

About MTI MicroFuel Cells
MTI MicroFuel Cells Inc. (”MTI Micro”) (MKTY), a subsidiary of Mechanical Technology, Incorporated, is the developer of Mobion® off-the-grid portable power solutions. MTI Micro has a team of entrepreneurial business executives, researchers and scientists; a proprietary direct methanol micro fuel cell power system and a number of system prototypes demonstrating size reductions and performance improvements; and related intellectual property. MTI Micro has received government funding and developed strategic partnerships to facilitate efforts to achieve commercialization. More information is available at www.mtimicrofuelcells.com.

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