The Fresh Air Company- Compressor Manufacturer Pdc Machines Inc. Grows with Market for Hydrogen and Fuel Cells

Industry Leaders Buy Clean, Reliable Technology from Pennsylvania-Based Small Business
Warminster, PA--The past few years have proved to be the most active for Pdc Machines Inc., a manufacturer of diaphragm compressors. These compressors are a key technology for the coming hydrogen economy. The small business from Warminster, Pennsylvania has made "compressing a cleaner future" its motto, providing clean, reliable technology to hydrogen (H2) generation companies, fuel cell (FC) developers and the automotive industry around the world. Pdc's list of customers includes top companies such as Air Products and Chemicals, Air Liquide, BOC, Gas Technology Institute, Hydrogenics, HyRadix, Praxair, Proton Energy Systems, Quantum Technologies, QuestAir Technologies, Teledyne Energy Systems, and state-funded initiatives like the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA).

Clean, reliable technology

Typical applications of Pdc's technology include H2 filling stations for FC vehicles, buses and forklifts, power back-up using hydrogen fuel cells for telecommunication towers and power plants, and residential refuelers for FC cars and power generators. The company's success is due to the numerous benefits their products provide:

- Contamination-free and leak-tight gas compression
- High reliability and uptime (customers have reported a life-cycle of 10,000 to 40,000 hours without the need for spare parts replacement)
- Low noise levels with only 85 dbA
- High efficiency (only one to two stages of compression are necessary and very little or no cooling required in certain cases)
- Wide range of performance with flow rates from 1 Nm3/hr to 2,000 Nm3/hr, horsepower from 1hp to 200hp and discharge pressure of up to 15,000 psi (1,034 bar) with the 3rd generation compressor model

Working with the industry's leaders

Working as a supplier to Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. (NYSE: APD), Pdc has provided several compressors for the construction of six hydrogen fueling demonstration stations installed in the United States and abroad. Several of Pdc’s compressors are rated to discharge pressures of 12,000 psi for the fueling of vehicles at 700 bar (10,000 psi).

Pdc has supplied Air Liquide (AL), France with a small compressor for H2 service as part of the AL refueling station destined for Singapore. This compressor provides a flow of 5 Nm3/hr at a discharge pressure of 6,100 psi. This compressor complies with CE regulations.

BOC has chosen Pdc Machines for hydrogen fueling stations the gas company is building across North America. These include one for BP in Taylor, Mi, as part of the DOE-sponsored Infrastructure Validation Program, two along the Hydrogen Highway(TM) in Vancouver, BC, and three for Cellex FC power module demonstrations at Wal-Mart locations in the United States.

Gas Technology Institute is utilizing two Pdc compressors for H2 fueling stations that use on site production of hydrogen from natural gas.

Pdc supplied a hydrogen compressor to HyRadix, Inc. for use with its Aptus(TM) on-site H2 generation equipment for an industrial customer in South-East Asia

Under The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), Plug Power will collaborate with American Honda Motor Company, Air Products and Chemicals, and Homeland Energy to provide fueling infrastructure necessary for fuel cell vehicles. Included in this project are two Honda FCX’s leased by the State of New York. The program calls for Plug Power to install a GenSite H2 generator along with Pdc’s compressor at the Company’s Latham location. An Air Products HF-150 mobile hydrogen fueler will be located at the State’s Harriman Campus in Albany, NY, allowing the site to be capable of directly fueling FC vehicles.

In June 2005, ROKAS S.A. installed a Pdc compressor at the Center of Renewable Energy Sources wind farm in Lavrion, Greece, as part of a research project (acronym RES2H2). The RES2H2 project is partly funded by the European Community (5th Framework Program). The goal of the project is to study the behavior of a relatively large scale wind-hydrogen production and storage system (5 Nm3/h) under the fluctuating production of a Wind Turbine.

Pdc is currently manufacturing several compressors of 12,000 psi (822 bar) for Quantum Technologies Worldwide for use in military and OEM fueling operations. These systems can operate both in Europe and the United States and will be dual compliant meeting CE, ATEX, PED and U.S.A NEC regulations.

QuestAir Technologies Inc. (Burnaby, British Columbia) is a developer and supplier of proprietary gas purification systems for several large international markets. Questair has joint development agreements with Exxon Mobil Research and Engineering Company, Shell Hydrogen, and a partnership with FuelCell Energy. In March of 2005, Pdc supplied a hydrogen compressor skid to QuestAir’s testing facilities.

As market matures, business grows

Pdc has become a regular exhibitor at Hydrogen Expo US, the leading showcase for hydrogen and fuel cell technologies in North America. Since the expo's premiere in 2003, the company has secured some US$ 5 million in new business. "Almost all of the exhibitors are now our customers", says Osama Al-Qasem, Director for Marketing & Sales at Pdc Machines. "This is because we deliver superior technology that is highly-efficient and can be used for a wide range of applications. At the same time, the way the Hydrogen Expo has grown reflects how the market has matured."

For additional information on Pdc's products and services, visit: http://www.pdcmachines.com/fuel_cell.htm or contact Mateen Afzal at tel. 215-443-9442, email: info@pdcmachines.com

For information on Hydrogen Expo US, visit: http://www.hydrogenexpo.com or contact Ines Freesen at tel. +49-2802-948484-0, email: info@hydrogenexpo.com


Pdc Machines, Inc.
1875 Stout Drive
Warminster, PA 18974, U.S.A.
Tel: 215-443-9442
Fax: 215-443-8530
E-mail: info@pdcmachines.com
Web site: http://www.pdcmachines.com