DENS secures millions of euros to commercialize their Hydrozine technology
Tech company DENS, developer of technology that overcomes hydrogens storage and transport barriers, has secured several million euros in investment from clean energy conglomerate Koolen Industries and Rabobank.
“This will finance rapid growth as we commercialize, scale and further develop our LOHC Hydrozine technology to speed up the energy transition,” said Max Aerts, CEO, DENS.
Using Hydrozine as a fuel to generate energy on site, makes it possible to refill hydrogen or charge electric heavy duty vehicles and machines in remote or difficult locations.
“This helps farmers, miners, construction companies and others replace their diesel-powered vehicles and equipment with carbon neutral solutions, even if they are far away from electricity grids or in cities where the grid might not have capacity to deliver enough power for major projects,” said Aerts.
Companies such as the property, infrastructure, engineering and construction giants Heijmans and TBI have already started replacing diesel generators with DENS equipment to charge their heavy duty electric vehicles and machines on site. In addition, rental partners such as F&L Powerrental and Fulltank, make it possible to gain experience with the safe and user-friendly Hydrozine generator for a short-term project or pilot.
“Switching to DENS will help us cut harmful emissions from our operations and we will therefore become carbon neutral by 2023,” said Stefan Daamen, Senior Advisor, Sustainability, Heijmans.
Safe and clean energy
Hydrozine is a safe and efficient liquid hydrogen carrier that makes it easy to store and transport hydrogen in tankers to locations anywhere in the world. The fuel contains 53 Kg of hydrogen per 1000 liters, so it can store significantly more hydrogen at atmospheric pressure in a liquid then gaseous hydrogen compressed at 700 bar.
“Hydrozine is both safe and cheap to transport as well as easy to use, which makes it an ideal fuel for heavy duty vehicles and machines,” said Tijn Swinkels, CTO, DENS.
Once on site, the patented dehydrogenation technology extracts the hydrogen so it can be used in fuel cell vehicles or to produce electricity to charge batteries for electric vehicles and machines.
Brainport based DENS is one of the most promising start-up technology companies in The Netherlands in terms of turnover potential, scalability and innovative strength, according to consultants Deloitte. (Ref 1.) Kees Koolen, CEO and Founder, Koolen Industries, shares their optimism.
“Koolen Industries is perpetually searching for solutions to the energy transition’s most difficult challenges. DENS will extend our existing capabilities in clean energy generation, conversion, storage and distribution in ways that will help us better serve industries that need electric heavy-duty vehicles and machines along with mobile energy storage,” he said.
“Rabobank is also pleased to support DENS in this next phase of growth to bridge the gap in sustainable energy generation. As early as 2018, DENS received a Rabobank Innovation Loan to further validate their proof-of-concept and design, build and test their Hydrozine-powered generators. Now we are glad to be part of their continuing journey to make emission-free energy available for a variety of off-grid applications,” said Michel Ziekman, Start- and Scale-up Banker at Rabobank.
Hydrozine is a viable and easy to scale technology, according to Professor Earl Goetheer, Principal Scientist at Technical University of Delft. (Ref 2.)
“DENS’s formic acid-to-power system can either serve as a standalone carbon-neutral electricity generator that is used as a power source in large electric vehicles, or it can produce high pressure hydrogen on demand from an easy storable Hydrozine solution. This offers tremendous scope for successful cooperation,” Prof. Goetheer said.
About DENS
DENS, or Dutch Energy Solutions, specializes in Hydrozine solutions that make hydrogen and electricity available to industries operating independently from the electricity grid. DENS’s solutions help reduce emissions from agriculture, mining, construction and other industries using heavy duty vehicles and machines that would otherwise be fuelled by diesel. DENS is committed to facilitating the transition from fossil fuels to clean energy.
References:
Ref 1 – Deloitte Technology Fast 50
Ref 2 – Fuelling the hydrogen economy: Scale-up of an integrated formic acid-to-power system
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S036031991930285X\
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