Energy

1. The New Energy · New Power · New Future forum

On the evening of June 19th, 2020, “New Energy · New Power · New Future” and the Lingnan Science and Bay Area Innovation forum were held successfully at the Guangdong Centre of Science. SinoHyKey Technology (Guangzhou) Company Limited’s vice chairman and chief technology officer, Dr Ye Siyu, was invited to this iteration of the forum.

The central focus of this forum was the innovation and development of alternative energy vehicle technologies in Guangdong province. Through the publication and deciphering of research results and relevant policies, internationally recognized experts were invited to speak and discuss the path of progress for industrially critical technologies, as well as consult with attending representatives to provide countermeasures and suggestions for further promoting the advancement of Guangdong’s alternative energy automobile industry.

Deputy Director Yang Jun of the Provincial Department of Science and Technology led with an introduction about the meaningful work that his department has carried out in the field since 2018, including the organization and implementation of two programs regarding alternative energy vehicle innovation that comprise twenty-six individual projects; moreover, the department has secured a provincial financial capital of 535 million yuan and a total investment exceeding two billion yuan. Some of these projects have yielded ground-breaking results, some of which were demonstrated at the forum. As one of the leading participants of the Provincial Science and Technology Department, SinoHyKey revealed their latest self-developed high performance and long-lasting membrane electrode assembly (MEA) products to the public.

Deputy Director Yang Jun viewing SinoHyKey’s MEA exhibits

2. Technological Innovation Dialogue

The Technological and Innovation Dialogue was largely centered on the development of Guangdong province’s alternative energy vehicle technologies, with analysis of the domestic and foreign market situations and industrial trends. Participants exchanged various ideas about technologies such as intelligent driving, hydrogen energy, and propulsion batteries; in terms of policy, regulations on relevant topics like subsidies, technology, and the industry were also discussed. Some pertinent dialogue has been selected for the reader to peruse.

Moderator Tian Wenying, Section Chief of the Department of Industry-University Research Integration in the Guangdong Provincial Department of Science and Technology, raised questions to the Guangdong Provincial Governor Advisor and SinoHyKey CTO, Dr. Ye Siyu of the Canadian National Academy of Engineering:

Tian: How do you view the gap in fuel cell technology at home and abroad, and the impact of technologically leading companies such as Toyota, Hyundai, and Ballard on the autonomy of China’s fuel cell development?

Ye: It is indeed true that the fuel cell technology of the developed countries represented by these three companies is more advanced than that of our nation, which can act to promote the construction of fuel cells in China. With that being said, one should not feel like this gap is very large; in fact, the progress Guangzhou has made in the field of fuel cells, especially in recent years, has been incredibly significant. He believes that it is necessary to continue with top-notch design, aim for the gap, and focus on the key core technology and material research that are involved with the development of fuel cells. Industrialization-oriented production, education, and research coupled with government support and positive feedback from consumers can narrow this gap as soon as possible; this will allow for high-performance, safe, and reliable fuel cell products to quickly become a part of thousands of households.

Following this, during the open question session, head of Dongguan Gonghe Electronics Liu Sizhi also raised questions to Dr. Ye:

Liu: How should we look at the prospective application of supercapacitors in hydrogen fuel cell and hybrid vehicles?

Ye: Supercapacitors, fuel cells, batteries and the like each have their own advantages. Everybody hopes that these technologies can complement each other, but the reality is often that they can be somewhat mutually exclusive. He also hopes that these technologies can merge with each other and improve upon their unique advantages – this is dependent on intelligent control to decide how to make the system better. Hopefully, true integration, as well as collaboration between the experts and scholars in these fields, can be achieved.

Through this forum, Guangdong province demonstrated to the country its determination to cultivate and develop alternative energy industries. It is imperative for traditional enterprises to quickly industrialize, and for Guangdong to occupy the commanding heights of the alternative energy industry in China, contributing to an accelerated economic transformation. The fuel cell is a cornerstone of the alternative energy industry, and the next order of business for the province is to support, guide, and establish partnerships between high-quality enterprises, universities, and R&D institutions such as SinoHyKey that actively participate in the development of this technology. With the market as a guide, the technological innovation system must move ahead with in-depth integration of industry, education, and research.

3. Company profile

SinoHyKey Technology Company is a well-known fuel cell membrane electrode assembly manufacturer based in Guangdong province. The company is committed to the industrialization and commercialization of high-performance catalyst-coated membrane (CCM) and membrane electrode assembly (MEA) for proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFC). The company has participated in scientific research for key areas of Guangdong in 2018 and 2019, and as the only fuel cell company in the province, was selected as the innovation and entrepreneurship team project of the Pearl River Talent Plan in 2019. The next step for SinoHyKey is to work closely with universities and research institutes to develop a new generation of practical fuel cell products, thus combining manufacturing, education, and research to further improve current performance figures and optimize the preparation of CCMs and MEAs. At the same time, SinoHyKey will strengthen its close ties with up and downstream enterprises to conglomerate fuel cell industrialization experience in both heavy- and light-duty applications, ultimately accelerating the establishment of the fuel cell passenger vehicle.