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HydroMax, an advanced gasification technology being developed by Diversified Energy Corporation (DEC) and licensed from Alchemix Corporation, was selected by the Department of Energy (DOE) from a pool of 1,318 applicants for research and technology transfer funding. The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I program is designed to provide funding for high-quality R&D on advanced concepts that are likely to lead to significant public benefit if the research is successful. DEC was selected for award under the "coal gasification and combustion technologies" topic area. Upon completion of Phase I, DEC will be eligible to compete for a Phase II follow-on award.

DEC teamed with CertainTeed Gypsum, one of North America's leading gypsum wallboard manufacturers, and a subsidiary of Compagnie de Saint-Gobain, for the project with the goal of reducing and stabilizing natural gas costs. DEC will conduct tests, design activities, and commercialization planning focused on utilizing HydroMax to gasify coal for the production of synthetic gas for industrial applications. The U.S. industrial sector is the largest gas user segment accounting for more than 6.6 trillion cubic feet (~$47 billion) of natural gas in 2006, with erratic pricing anywhere from $5 - $15 per million Btu. The project will expand upon previous test results by validating system performance across a broader range of coal types (e.g., low rank coal) at a scale appropriate to substantiate growth to commercial volumes. DEC will concentrate on the end-to-end architecture and requisite interfaces, performance analyses, and economic modeling specifically geared to the needs of CertainTeed Gypsum. Operating over 23 North American wallboard and finishing plants, all with substantive natural gas usage for process applications, CertainTeed Gypsum provides an excellent model for the typical needs of an industrial user.

The HydroMax technology is based on a molten-metals reactor approach. It offers several critical advantages for industrial customers such as CertainTeed Gypsum, including scaling to the 5 - 100 MWe output range, a compact size for simple integration, hydrocarbon input flexibility, high reliability, substantive reductions in capital and O&M costs compared to traditional gasifiers, and high efficiencies. Previous technology development includes multiple bench-scale tests along with extensive analyses and modeling. The DOE SBIR Phase I program allows for the next logical step in the evolution of the HydroMax technology.

Phillip Brown, President and CEO of Diversified Energy, commented on the award, "With wildly fluctuating natural gas prices and the associated economic impacts, the industrial sector can realize substantial benefit from energy cost stabilization. However, current gasification technologies don't scale economically or are limited to certain feedstock types. With DOE funding for HydroMax we're solving these problems to provide the industrial sector with a clean alternative." John College, Special Projects Manager for CertainTeed Gypsum remarked, "We are excited to be working with Diversified Energy. We need gasification technologies that are smaller in size, have reasonable material handling capacities, and can produce clean energy at the desired cost with stability. HydroMax appears to be a perfect fit."