AFC Energy PLC (LON:AFC) has appointed Dr Michael Rendall as its new chief engineer and product officer starting next month.
Rendall was previously head of engineering and industrialisation for the consumer electronics product group Dyson, where he led its battery and energy storage programmes.
Prior to that Rendall had worked on prototypes for the conversion of ammonia into electricity, a technology being developed by AFC, when he worked at Diverse Energy which was a pioneer in the use of fuel cells as a self-contained power source.
AFC added that this specialist experience in the utilisation of ammonia as a fuel and in ammonia cracking will help it leverage one of the technology's core strengths.
Rendall has also been heavily involved the scale-up of initial manufacturing facility design, equipment specification and operations in the UK.
"The Hydrogen economy has now gained broad acceptance as a key enabler of new zero greenhouse aspirations and has the ability to grow into a significant global market for AFC Energy and its peers,” he said.
"AFC Energy's alkaline technology brings with it many advantages, not least its ability to function effectively on lower-grade fuels including ammonia.”
Adam Bond, AFC Energy’s chief executive, added that Rendall’s world-class experience at Dyson and Diverse Energy in delivering real-world applications in collaboration with industry partners in the fulfilment of customer demand would bring tremendous value to AFC.