Contact Information: Investor relations: Rich Kaiser (800) 631-8127 ir@enableipc.com
Enable IPC Subsidiary, SolRayo, Unveils New Lower Cost, Higher Power Ultracapacitor Incorporating Nanotechnology Coatings
VALENCIA, CA--(Marketwire - July 8, 2009) - Enable IPC Corporation's (PINKSHEETS : EIPC )
subsidiary, SolRayo LLC, has unveiled the design of the Company's new
ultracapacitor using nanotechnology coatings for use in a number of
applications, including smart grid, grid stability, power quality, and
renewable energy. The new design is aimed at lowering costs and delivering
more energy and power than similar devices currently on the market for the
same price, opening up huge, untapped markets for ultracapacitors.
Flexible design
The new design is extremely flexible and is based on cells that can be used
individually, or stacked in assemblies to attain the desired voltage and
power.
"We have designed individual 300 farad units (a farad is a unit of
capacitance) that can be stacked in series or parallel in a larger
framework," explained Kevin Leonard, SolRayo's Chief Technology Officer.
"The slim design should allow 300 farad units to be produced at
considerably less expense than a similar unit available today. That's
quite an achievement."
"Our goal is to fundamentally change the market by opening up the use of
nanotechnology in ultracapacitors in a wide range of applications," said
Dr. Mark Daugherty, SolRayo's CEO. "The idea is to use our cost-cutting
technology in a simple design that will address a myriad of applications,
beginning with smart grid, grid stability, power quality and renewable
energy."
Addresses renewable energy issues
The State of Wisconsin awarded a grant to SolRayo in late 2008 to develop
their technology for renewable energy applications in the state. One of
the issues with solar and wind sources is the cost of storing excess energy
so it can be used later as needed.
"The key is to keep costs low while significantly improving performance,"
Dr. Daugherty said. "Our technology and this design will help achieve
those goals."
Using ultracapacitors should cost significantly less than other storage
methods for many applications when you look at total life cycle cost. Due
to their simpler design, and significantly longer life, ultracapacitors
require less upfront, maintenance and replacement costs than batteries and
other storage mediums.
Standard ultracapacitors use carbon electrodes. The Enable IPC / SolRayo
device starts with carbon electrodes and adds a proprietary nanotechnology
coating which has been shown to improve storage capacity of ultracapacitors
by many times while lowering the storage cost per energy unit.
Design completed; alpha unit in process
The state grant requires Enable IPC's SolRayo subsidiary to develop, design
and build a prototype ultracapacitor for renewable energy storage. Earlier
this year, the Company completed phase I of the program, resulting in the
designs pictured here. The Company is actively building these units and is
on schedule to unveil its alpha unit product in January 2010.
Production units are scheduled to follow beta testing in early 2010.
Other applications
While the Company's focus has been on grid stability, power quality and
renewable energy, the use of ultracapacitors in other areas is gaining
momentum. Third party market researchers report large annual growth in
consumer, industrial and transportation applications.
"Ultracapacitors take some of the load off batteries when large bursts of
power are needed," explained Mr. Leonard. "An example is in your digital
cell phone -- the cell phone is powered by a battery, but the burst of
power needed for transmitting is often supplied by an ultracapacitor."
Estimates vary widely between market research reports, but Enable IPC
personnel believe a conservative estimate of the worldwide ultracapacitor
market could reach $600 million in 2012. This represents an average annual
growth rate of 15% to 17%.
"Ultracapacitors are coming into their own," said Dr. Daugherty. "Our goal
is to have our technology lead the way to their widespread use throughout
the world."
About Enable IPC (www.enableipc.com)
Enable IPC provides efficient, streamlined strategies for turning
technologies into products and bringing them to market. Enable IPC's
growing portfolio currently includes the exclusive rights to two
break-through energy technologies: a nanoparticle-based ultracapacitor and
a nanowire-based microbattery. For more information, please visit
http://www.enableipc.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This release contains forward-looking statements, such as "estimated,"
"believes," "should," "targeted" and similar terminology, which are made
pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995. Enable IPC intends that such forward-looking statements
be subject to the safe harbors created thereby. These statements involve
risks and uncertainties that are identified from time to time in the
company's SEC reports and filings, and are subject to change at any time.
Enable IPC's actual results and other corporate developments could differ
materially from that which has been anticipated in such statements.
