Funny this question should be asked this morning....
Mantra Announces US Patent for Fuel Cell
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwired - Jul 8, 2014) - Mantra Venture Group Ltd. (OTCQB:MVTG) and its subsidiary, Mantra Energy Alternatives, have announced the granting of the US patent for its Mixed-Reactant Fuel Cell (MRFC) technology. US Patent No. 8,709,680 B2, titled "Mixed Reactant Flow-By Fuel Cell", is the second issued for the MRFC, the first being the British patent GB 2474202 (2012). Mantra owns the exclusive worldwide license for this technology, which has been patented by its owner, Professor Emeritus Colin Oloman, a key member of the company's Scientific Advisory Board.
The MRFC is an unconventional fuel cell that promises to simplify and reduce the costs of fuel cell systems. Because it uses a mixture of fuel and oxidant, the expensive, failure-prone membrane can be eliminated and the balance of the system correspondingly simplified, offering the potential for a smaller, lighter, and cheaper fuel cell. The MRFC additionally uses liquid fuels, thereby avoiding the myriad difficulties associated with the storage and distribution of gaseous hydrogen.
The awarded patent covers several liquid fuels and various cell configurations such as the novel Swiss-roll architecture. The fuels covered include formic acid and its salts, products that can be derived through the conversion of the global warming agent carbon dioxide by Mantra's other process, ERC. The integration of these two technologies represents a unique opportunity in the field of energy storage, a rapidly growing market that is recognized as the key to renewable energy technologies.
"The granting of a US patent is a verification of the novelty and uniqueness of the MRFC," said Mantra's CEO Larry Kristof. "This news comes at the perfect time for Mantra, as we are currently accelerating our development work toward a demonstration of the technology."
Part of this acceleration includes the addition of Piotr Forysinski (Ph.D.) to the Mantra team as Product Development Engineer for the fuel cell. Dr. Forysinski, who obtained his Ph.D. in Physical Chemistry from UBC and his MChem from Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh, Scotland, brings to Mantra an impressive breadth of engineering experience. This includes the construction and commissioning of a custom molecular beam epitaxy system and a 30 mK scanning tunneling microscope, and the design, construction and operation of a novel mass spectrometer with a tune-able XUV laser light source and custom-built ion optics. For the latter project, Dr. Forysinski, then a graduate student, lead the team in the technical design and construction of the apparatus.
"We are extremely excited about the addition of Dr. Forysinski to the Mantra team," said VP of Corporate Development Patrick Dodd. "He has a truly unique set of skills and has already shown his ability by contributing to the reactor design."
About Mantra Venture Group
Mantra Venture Group Ltd. (OTCQB:MVTG) is a clean technology incubator that takes innovative emerging technologies and moves them towards commercialization. The Company, through its subsidiary Mantra Energy Alternatives, is currently developing two groundbreaking electrochemical technologies designed to make reducing greenhouse gas emissions profitable, ERC (Electro-Reduction of Carbon Dioxide) and MRFC (Mixed-Reactant Fuel Cell).
ERCis a form of "carbon capture and utilization" (CCU) that converts the polluting greenhouse gas carbon dioxide into useful, valuable products including formic acid and formate salts. By utilizing clean electricity, the process offers the potential for an industrial plant to reduce emissions while generating a salable product and a profit.
The MRFC is an unconventional fuel cell that uses a mixture of fuel and oxidant, thereby greatly reducing the complexity and cost of the fuel cell system. Ideal for portable applications, the MRFC is cheaper, lighter, and more compact than conventional fuel cell technologies.
Forward-looking statements: Except for the historical information contained herein, the matters discussed in this press release are forward-looking statements. Actual results may differ materially from those described in forward-looking statements and are subject to risks and uncertainties. See Mantra Venture Group's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, which identify specific factors that may cause actual results or events to differ materially from those described in forward-looking statements.
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