Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Economy Center of Economic Excellence

Inception:
2004

About the CoEE:

The CoEE in Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Economy is part of USC’s larger Future Fuels™ Initiative, which is expanding the school’s expertise in fuel cells and alternative energy. This CoEE will conduct research to develop hydrogen storage materials and sensors for fuel cells. Fuel cells produce electricity from hydrogen and hydrogen-rich carbon fuels without thermal combustion and are more efficient for power generation than existing coal and natural gas technology.

Along with other components of the Future Fuels™ Initiative, this CoEE will be housed in the Horizon Center, a $55 million public and private facility at USC Innovista.

A startup company, Palmetto Fuel Cell Technologies, and six spin-off companies have been created through associated work of the CoEE. In the past fiscal year, the CoEE obtained a U.S. patent and filed for multiple others.

USC has the nation’s only National Science Foundation Industry/University Cooperative Research Center for Fuel Cells (CFC). Through the CFC, USC is collaborating with the Korea Institute of Energy Research, the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy in Germany, and 20 national industrial partners, including BASF and Exxon.

Funding level:
$5 million

CoEE endowed chair: