Scott Bauer, chief operating officer of Flooid Power Systems, stopped in the cascade compression system room during a factory tour on Monday. Staff Photo/Kevin Guting

A 125-foot-tall tower is a central feature of the Flooid Power Systems plant. Staff Photo/Kevin Guting

Flooid Power Systems chairman and head of research, Mark Maynard, stopped in the cascade heat pump system room during a factory tour on Monday. Staff Photo/Kevin Guting

Mark Maynard, Chairman and Research Director of Flooid Power Systems, led a tour of the cascade compression system of the factory on Monday, November 1. Staff photo/KEVIN GUTTING

On Monday, November 1, Glenn Erhardt, a member of the Flooid Power Systems team, performed maintenance on the plant's cascaded compression system. Staff photo/KEVIN GUTTING

An overview of the cascade heat pump system at the Flooid Power Systems plant, taken on Monday, November 1. Staff photo/KEVIN GUTTING

Anthony Baez (left) and Matt Belden prepare to reposition the solar panel installation at the Flooid Power Systems factory on Monday, November 1. Staff photo/KEVIN GUTTING

Flooid Power Systems Chairman and Research Director Mark Maynard (right) and his team took a group photo on Monday. Staff Photo/Kevin Guting

Easthampton-When the world is trying to deal with global climate change and find viable alternatives to clean energy production, a small company in Easthampton stated that it has a patented new way to generate electricity. It can completely change the way of generating electricity around the world.

On Monday, the Bulletin was invited to visit the Flooid Power Systems pilot facility exclusively, which is currently located in a property in western Massachusetts that has not yet been made public.

"We have kept this confidential for the past six years," said Mark Maynard, co-founder, chairman and head of research of Flooid Power. He believes that new technologies will become a "game changer" for energy production.

The company is awaiting an assessment by the Massachusetts Department of Energy and Resources to classify Flooid Power as a new type of sustainable energy.

Maynard said that the Flooid power system can continuously generate utility-scale power anywhere in the world, 365 days a year. According to Maynard, it uses no fuel, produces no emissions or waste, and can be easily expanded and replicated wherever there is a solid foundation to produce reliable and affordable electricity.

"The key to our system is to collect the energy in the air and convert it into electricity," Maynard said.

Ben Schwartz, the company's president and co-founder, called the system "elegant and intuitive."

"We use air and gravity-these are not resources that we are about to run out," Schwartz said. "Once you understand it, the system is obvious. This is a novel reconfiguration of existing technology."

Flooid power is a compression-based energy system that uses advanced heat pump and compressor design, combined with a new type of high-density, ultra-low resistance, non-toxic substance called "Flooid", which was invented by Maynard.

"Our heat pump is 300% more efficient than the best heat pump on the planet," Maynard said. "Compared with ordinary compressors, we have reduced the energy required to compress air by 50%, and we have captured 100% of the heat in the process."

Heavier than concrete with milkshake thickness, Flooid is composed of approximately 50% water and minerals such as barium sulfate, calcium chloride and clay. Maynard said that a small system uses 2,000 gallons of Flooid and weighs 88 tons. The heavier weight provides more force to turn the turbine of the system.

"It's environmentally friendly, it won't go bad, it won't go bad," Maynard said.

In the energy production process, the system uses high-efficiency compressed air to replace its iconic Flooid, and at the same time captures and concentrates environmental heat and converts it into electrical energy.

Maynard said: "We have built a device that can convert low-level energy into electricity, and at a high conversion rate." "Our conversion rate is 70%, and the conversion rate of nuclear power is 40%."

The power generation is all done in a controlled, closed tower system, so it is described as "in-tower hydropower."

"Actually, I can run this system from here. It's no different from running a large hydroelectric power plant," said engineer Ken Britt, sitting in front of a computer screen in the control room.

Outside the small control building stands a 125-foot-tall tower with two 12-inch diameter pipes running through the center. These are the pipes that carry the Flooid up and down in the system. On both sides of the tower are powerful refrigeration and air compressors.

Maynard said the pilot facility has proven that the system is effective and can be replicated and scaled up to generate 5-10 megawatts of electricity. Such a facility would include a 125-foot-tall tower, requiring 4 to 5 acres of land to operate, including parking facilities for the facility.

Flooid Towers are primarily designed for microgrid or distributed power applications that generate electricity at or near the place of use. The bigger the tower, the more electricity it can generate.

According to Maynard, a 200-foot tower can generate four times the energy of a 125-foot design.

"A 400-foot-tall tower can generate 350 megawatts of electricity, but we haven't done that yet," Maynard said.

He also pointed out that the Flooid power supply can be included in the new design of large-scale urban construction.

"It can enter a 40-story building, and it doesn't take up more space than an elevator shaft," he said. "This will generate enough funds to run that building and 5 to 10 other buildings."

However, the company's current plan is to start construction close to home.

"We are entering a larger electricity market through municipal utilities," Schwartz said.

Flooid Power Systems is currently in preliminary negotiations to build a 200-foot-tall tower to provide electricity to a municipality in Massachusetts.

Schwartz said that although energy is new, its support and distribution methods will still depend on the existing infrastructure and supply chain.

"The way we enter the market is collaboration and transition; we are not interested in overthrowing the Apple car," Schwartz said. "Economic infrastructure based on fossil fuels is still important."

Flooid Power Systems was established in 2017 and currently has 13 employees.

"We are a small company with big ideas," Maynard said. "We have been working hard to develop it from just $5 million."

During the development phase, Maynard said that an oil company and a wind power company approached the company separately, and the two companies provided large amounts of funds to purchase the technology, "but there are no plans to use it." He suspects that they are trying to "bury the project" to protect their industry.

"This will not happen, we have ensured that no one but us controls this technology," he said. "This is a technology that should not be suppressed."

Both Maynard and Schwartz attribute the success of the pilot project to their carefully selected team.

"We have a group of very talented and dedicated people who really believe in what we are doing and they work together like a well-lubricated machine," Maynard said.

Maynard pointed out that the combination of tight budgets, response to the global pandemic, and supply chain disruptions does hinder development, but it also forces the team to troubleshoot and think creatively, often proposing new and improved processes and ideas.

The company is a beneficial company, so 20% of its profits will be returned to the community.

Maynard said that Flooid Power Systems is committed to sourcing all materials from any country where they will be built.

"This is how our company is designed," he said. "If we build in one place, we should source from within, use local people and work hard to give back to the community."

If everything goes according to plan, the company expects to produce an easy-to-replicate "cookie cutter" system that can create affordable, uninterrupted electricity that can be extended to every community regardless of size, climate, or location. They hope that this will make sustainable development possible in all corners of the world.

Maynard said: "We are very close to the tipping point of climate change, we must make it public, and we must do it now." "This is not the only answer, but it is an important part of the answer."

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