An AccelNow Client Feature
Press Release Provided by Stone Mountain Technologies, Inc.
Johnson City, Tennessee, USA (August 7, 2017) – Stone Mountain Technologies, Inc. (SMTI) is pleased to announce that it has been selected as an awardee by the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Building Technology Office for a $2.7 million grant to accelerate commercialization of a residential heat pump warm-air furnace replacement product.
With key financial support from gas utilities and other industry partners, the DOE and SMTI seek to complete the final design for manufacturing of an 80,000 BTU/hr gas absorption heat pump. With 3rd party verification, SMTI’s prototypes have proven that its design is capable of providing ample warm air and hot water to a home even in the coldest winter climates without the drastic loss in fuel efficiency and/or capacity experienced by other types of heat pumps. While the “80K” size was originally selected as a common size for research purposes, in practice, SMTI will be capable of manufacturing a full range of residential output capacities with minimal changes to design and materials.
This innovative grant, a new approach for the DOE, creates a viable bridge over the so-called “valley of death” – an historically treacherous phase in new technology development where new ideas often fail for lack of critical funding. SMTI will lead a team focused on addressing the product’s remaining technical and manufacturing issues, as well as critical market questions that can are important before final commercial release of the product.
Within the United States and Canada alone, there are over 3 million warm-air residential type furnaces sold every year, and SMTI has identified a significant portion of them as ideal targets for this particular cold-climate-focused variation of its gas absorption technology. In addition to space heating, the addition of a hot water storage tank, enables homeowners to enjoy warm comfort and hot showers from the same very high efficiency equipment.
This project sets the stage to create significant new U.S. based manufacturing jobs, supporting the next wave of innovative high-efficiency heating products for residential and commercial buildings.
About Stone Mountain Technologies, Inc.
SMTI, based in Johnson City (Tennessee), is an early-stage venture that is developing the next generation of ultrahigh-efficiency heating appliances for homes and commercial businesses. The partially renewable (35%) technology, based on the gas absorption cycle, can be harnessed across a wide variety of applications, including space, water, and pool heating. SMTI is developing partnerships with original equipment manufacturers that sell heating appliances, and will provide the core enabling technology (the “thermal compressor”). This enables OEMs to offer customized appliances to their customers with total fuel efficiencies of approximately 140% and outstanding economics.
Contact for More Information
Scott Reed, VP Marketing & Strategy
818-421-4229 | Scott.Reed@StoneMountainTechnologies.com
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