ACTA.L Regulatory News (ACTA)

7 Sep 2006 07:01

Acta S.p.A.07 September 2006 7 September 2006 Acta S.p.A. ("Acta" or the "Company") Leading Fuel Cell Expert Joins Acta Acta, the manufacturer of platinum-free catalysts for fuel cells and otherapplications, is delighted to announce that Dr Xiaoming Ren has been appointedas Director, Fuel Cell Technologies. Dr Ren has industry acknowledged experiencein fuel cell development and is expected to contribute significantly to theintroduction of Acta's unique HYPERMEC catalyst technology into the fuel cellindustry. Dr Ren has been working on fuel cells for over twelve years. He worked for sixyears at Los Alamos National Laboratory, the leading US research centre foremerging technology, and was subsequently research director at MTI Micro FuelCells, a fuel cell company listed on NASDAQ. Dr Ren is recognised as one of theleading US experts on fuel cells and has written 25 patents and more than 30scientific publications concerning direct methanol fuel cells, including theoptimisation of catalysts for improved performance. Dr Ren will be responsible for the development of Acta's catalysts for fuelcells and for the application technology that will optimise catalystperformance. He will greatly enhance Acta's capability in this area with hispractical experience and research leadership skills. The management of Actabelieve he will deliver significant advances in the use of HYPERMEC catalysts infuel cells and that Acta will be able to secure valuable intellectual propertyas a result. Xiaoming Ren said: "I am very excited to join Acta. Acta's catalyst technologyis a true breakthrough for the portable fuel cell industry and I am delighted tobe able to play a part in bringing it to market." Mr Uemura, senior manager at Sumitomo Corporation, Acta's marketing partner inAsia, said: "Dr Ren is well known in the Asian market and Acta's customers havebeen very pleased to see someone of his experience and reputation joining Acta." Paolo Bert, Chief Executive, commented: "We are delighted to welcome Xiaoming toour management team. He has a first class record in developing breakthroughproducts in an industrial environment and he brings invaluable experience in theuse of catalysts in portable fuel cell systems. The recruitment of a scientistof his calibre underlines the attractiveness of Acta's technology and willenhance our reputation in the industry." - ends - Contact:Acta S.p.A:Toby Woolrych Tel: 020 7067 0700 Weber Shandwick Square Mile:Nick Dibden/Charlie Hooper Tel: 020 7067 0700 Notes to editors: The Fuel Cell Industry Fuel Cells Fuel cells are electrochemical devices which generate electricity from a fuel (typically hydrogen or methanol in the past) and air producing justwater and sometimes carbon dioxide as exhaust. Portable fuel cells are designedto replace lithium-ion batteries for mobile phones, laptops and other portableelectronic devices, all of which are increasingly hampered by the limitations ofbattery life. Most major electronics companies have large scale R&D programmesto make fuel cells a reality in consumer markets. These fuel cells are generallynot powered by hydrogen gas, which is restricted in use and hard to safely storeand use, but by a hydrocarbon liquid, typically methanol. Direct Alcohol Fuel Cells (DAFC) These are fuel cells that have been powered by methanol in the past. Methanol is toxic and is usually a fossil fuel derivative. Ethanol, which may replace it thanks to Acta's new technology, is safe and practical to use. Ethanol is also made from renewable sources, making the fuel cell more environmentally friendly as the carbon dioxide produced in use comes from the existing carbon cycle and does not count as a greenhouse gas. Fuel cells with Acta catalysts can also use ethylene glycol and glycerol, which are both safe and have excellent technical advantages over methanol. Barriers for fuel cell commercialisation Fuel cells have made and continue to make great strides towards commercialisation. Key remaining barriers are partly driven by the catalysts, which have to date contained costly and scarce platinum: • preventing products from reaching their commercial cost targets • requiring fuel cells to use impractical methanol as a direct hydrocarbon fuel Acta's technology Acta Acta is an Anglo-Italian company which floated on AIM in October 2005.Acta has completed its manufacturing and research facility near Pisa in Italyand is now rolling out its HYPERMEC catalysts to the global market forevaluation. HYPERMEC Catalyst Acta has developed a platinum-free catalyst called HYPERMEC. HYPERMEC is made from cheap and abundant materials, dramatically lowering the cost of industrialising fuel cells and electrolysers. HYPERMEC also allows theuse for the first time of a whole range of hydrocarbon fuels, including ethanol. Xiaoming Ren Los Alamos National Laboratory Los Alamos National Laboratory has been at the forefront of fuel cell and other technology research for many years. Dr Ren worked on novel catalyst synthesisand characterization as well as fuel cell construction and fuel cell operating conditions. He also worked on other areas of advanced materials technology, including super capacitors, electrochemical sensors and battery technologies,which are of relevance to Acta's development programme. MTI Micro Fuel Cells At MTI Dr Ren was responsible for developing pioneering technology for portable fuel cells, including complex electrodes for improved mass transport, enhanced fuel efficiency, stable fuel cell performance and the use of 100% fuel in order to eliminate the need to carry water in the fuel. Experience in fuel cell development Acta has demonstrated unique performance for its catalyst technology in portable fuel cells. In order to optimize this performance in individual customer applications, it is desirable to optimise how the catalyst is used both in the anode and cathode electrodes and in the Membrane Electrode Assembly (MEA) which is the heart of a fuel cell. Dr Ren's extensive experience in the construction of electrodes and MEA's will be of great importance as Acta engages even more closely with customers. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange