In a project to develop fuel-cell power for forklifts, ExxonMobil Corp of Irving, Texas linked in late November with Hy9 Corp of Hopkinton, Massachusetts, a developer of hydrogen purification technologies.

ExxonMobil wants to commercialise an on-vehicle hydrogen production system for use initially in a fuel cell-powered forklift application and later in passenger vehicles.

Hy9 plans to provide hydrogen purifiers to ExxonMobil for the oil industry giant's on-board fuel cell reformer project.

ExxonMobil wants to implement onboard fuel cell reformers that can eliminate the need for filling stations across the country. The firm disclosed the initiative in November 2007.

The ExxonMobil project also involves fuel cell maker Plug Power Inc of Latham, New York; purification technology maker QuestAir Technologies Inc. of Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada; and the Blechner center for industrial catalysis and process development at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in Israel.

"Plug Power and ExxonMobil have been collaborating on the development of reformer technology for lift trucks since 2007," a statement from Plug Power says. "At this time, there is no (forklift) OEM who is a party to this collaboration."

Onboard reforming in a passenger vehicle could be 80% more fuel efficient than current engine technologies and cut carbon dioxide emissions by 45%, notes Emil Jacobs in a statement. Jacobs is vice president of research and development for ExxonMobil research and engineering.