- FIRE SAFETY – Coolfire® catalytic heating provides a level of safety far beyond any previous fuel-based heating technology. Low average temperature (<260°C) and the fact that there is no actual flame generated and that the microscopic heat-generating sites (catalytic particles) are surrounded by open-cell metal foam which acts as a natural flame arrestor means that it cannot induce a fire under any conceivable condition encountered by a user.
- An additional layer of protection is provided by multiple temperature sensors distributed strategically throughout the unit in order to shut-off the reaction if operating parameters exceed nominal settings.
- IMMUNE TO WIND EFFECTS – Unlike flame-based products, Coolfire® catalytic heating is a completely enclosed heat reaction process, isolating the heating mechanism from the effects of wind and air turbulence. This is a consequence of both the flameless nature of catalytic combustion and the unique geometry of the Coolfire® design.
- OPTIMIZED USER EXPERIENCE BY PRECISE SYSTEM & PROCESS REGULATION – The Coolfire® catalytic heating approach is designed to be amenable to microcontroller operation. The heat-producing reaction may be rapidly turned on and off without user interaction using preprogrammed user scenarios. This allows exact temperature control of the beverage or food item being heated. An integrated web of temperature sensors located throughout the product provides the microcontroller continuous system and process status. The rapid and easy ignition or quenching of the catalytic heat reaction affords a high level of precise temperature control and operational flexibility in order to optimize user experience.
- RELIABLE “EASY START” IGNITION MECHANISM -The reaction starting mechanism (ignitor) is entirely automated and utilizes a pulsed joule heating coil. This type of ignitor provides a highly reliable starting process with extremely low failure rates (millions of start cycles) and lends itself to being easily embedded into microcontroller-based operating systems. By comparison, most portable flame-based devices that have starters, require the user to manually actuate a snap-action piezoelectric device in order to generate a spark. Piezoelectric starters are not always reliable in igniting the fuel/air mixture and tend to have a short operational lifetime (typically on the order of a few thousand starts) because of the fragility of the piezoelectric material.
- NO DETECTABLE TOXIC EMISSIONS
* Method 1: CO values are established by operating the stove inside a containment vessel (e.g. box) designed to allow air to enter at the bottom and exhaust to exit through a chimney where measurements are obtained. This method, because of the dilution with outside air, gives CO values substantially less than method 2 (e.g. by a factor of 5 or 10). Measurements obtained by Roger Caffin/Backpacking Light.
** Method 2: CO values are obtained by direct sampling of emissions exiting the stove exhaust vents. Measurements obtained by CNW Global
Measurements performed by Roger Caffin for “backpacking Light” included examining the changes in CO emissions that occur when altering a variety of operational parameters. These include; high and low power settings, small and large pot sizes, the distance between pot bottom and burner head, wind, horizontal flames versus vertical flames.
These results suggest that CO generation in flame-based products derives largely from the dynamical nature of flames. In other words, the physical properties of the flame chamber (i.e. geometry, size, and materials that define the volume between the burner and the item to be heated, such as a pot or frying pan) and the parameters that affect the fuel/air reaction (e.g. air/fuel feed rate, surface temperature of the item to be heated, wind effects and altitude ) is not fixed and can be altered by small changes in its physical environment. Because of this, it can be difficult to predict with certainty a set value for CO emissions from a particular product design.
In contrast to flame-based heat, CoolFire® catalytic combustion does NOT produce any measurable (< 1ppm) quantities of CO after start-up is completed, regardless of wind, power level, orientation, or altitude (i.e. up to 12,000ft.)