In what University of Alaska Fairbanks officials are calling a "significant milestone," a fuel cell designed to cut-down on carbon dioxide emissions passed its one-year operational mark.

UAF began testing fuel cell technologies over six years ago with Fuel Cell Technologies of Kingston, Ontario, but this is the first prototype to successfully work for an entire year. The mark represents an important achievement toward showing the technology is "coming of age," the university said.

During its 8,700 hours of operation, the cell has provided 24,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity to Fairbanks Natural Gas. Averaging two kilowatt-hours of generated heat, the unit has a system efficiency of 70 percent, a "significant efficiency gain" when compared to similar systems of its size, the University said, like small diesel generators that operate at 25 percent.

The cell worked 91.5 percent of the time, the university reported, an important number as the U.S. Department of Defense, a potential user, requires at least 90 percent efficiency.

The unit failed only once, the school said, when a software glitch caused a system shutdown and changes in the fuel cell system. The current fuel cell has run on "slightly reduced power" since then, but FCT engineers said a new system would avoid the problem.

"The unit has proved to be surprisingly robust in the field, considering the current state of product development," said Dennis Witmer, director of the UAF Arctic Energy Technology Development Laboratory, in a statement.

FCT continues to monitor the system by remote monitoring in Kingston, and the system receives regular maintenance by UAF and Fairbanks Natural Gas employees.

Funding for the project comes from the U.S. Department of Energy's Arctic Energy Office, along with UAF and FCT.

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