Project team members – Left to right. David Bennett, Project Manager Mech, DR Jessica Allen Project Manager Chem, DR Hui Song Post Doctorate researcher (NIER), Jeffrey Lyons Founder and Director, Adam Mcintosh Business Manager
We are pleased to announce that Local business and CCIC member, “Hydrogen at Home Pty Ltd”, is a finalist in the 2023 Startup Daily Best in Tech Awards in the category of Best Regional Startup, alongside two other finalists. The awards will be held on the 6th September at the Establishment Ballroom in Sydney.
Founder and Director, Jeffrey Lyons, started his business “Hydrogen at Home” in 2019 with a vision to take a leadership position in the acceleration of hydrogen sustainable energy technology. He saw the opportunity to tackle the domestic market, providing a solution that would provide household power 24 hours a day using hydrogen derived from treated tap water and roof top solar.
With his background as regional business manager working in a Global Multinational Corporation (GMNC) specialising in materials science, his broad cross functional management experience and Army service, he saw the opportunity to provide a tactical energy solution to help the Army meet future energy challenges. In 2021 he was invited to participate in the Army Innovation Day 2021(AID21) in Brisbane, where he had the opportunity to show his plans for what is now called the “Hydrogen Energy Storage system” (HESS).
As a result of his exhibit, he was selected along with three other AID21 participants to submit a detailed proposal for his innovative hydrogen energy technology. Consequently, he was successful in receiving funding to build and test a proof of concept of his HESS system. The system would provide a means of making hydrogen fuel and generating electricity on the battlefield.
Within 12 months of the grant being provided and expanding his team to include two project managers and working with the University of Newcastle’s Newcastle Institute for Energy and Resources (NIER), the first prototype was built and tested. The project was delivered on time and in budget and exceeded performance expectations.
The project showed the Army that green hydrogen (using solar power to produce the hydrogen) can be made in the field in a tactical setting. This technology exploits the high energy density of Hydrogen using technology with virtually no moving parts resulting in nearly silent operation. The stored hydrogen has multiple uses but, in this project, the focus was electricity generation using a hydrogen fuel cell. Another example for the use of the gas is to fuel a hydrogen fuel cell car.
Still early days for the technology with more testing to be conducted and the potential for more opportunities to work with the Army. Jeffrey has achieved this while still holding down a full-time job and such is the case with his team.
Central Coast industry Connect is proud to be the industry Partner of the Hydrogen at Home business, providing support and connections to help Jeffrey and his team to achieve success. Executive Director of CCIC, Frank Sammut said “It’s great to see this type of innovation occurring right here on the Central Coast and that CCIC can play a role in making it a reality”.
