Precision Combustion, Inc.

Precision Combustion, Inc., a small business based in North Haven, Connecticut, develops catalytic energy systems, fuel cell technologies, and advanced environmental control components for federal research and development agencies as a prime contractor (99% of recent awards), competing predominantly under total small business set-asides on SBIR, STTR, and grant awards. The company holds over two decades of federal contract and grant history across NASA, the Department of Defense, the Department of Energy, and the Department of Commerce, with particular strength in solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) systems, hydrogen production and capture technologies, catalytic reactors, and life support equipment for aerospace and defense applications.

Customer concentration centers on research-focused federal agencies. The top five funding sources by award count—NASA Shared Services Center (32 awards), Army RDECOM (25 awards), Navy Office of Naval Research (16 awards), NASA proper (16 awards), and the Department of Energy (20 awards)—account for 45% of recent awards. By potential value, the top tier shifts to emphasize dollar magnitude: ONR leads at $18.7 million combined potential value (16 awards), followed by Army TACOM Life Cycle Management Command at $17.8 million (7 awards), NASA Shared Services Center at $16.3 million (32 awards), and Army RDECOM at $15.1 million (25 awards). These four agencies represent 73% of combined potential value across the portfolio.

Representative prime contract work includes a $4.776 million FY25 SBIR Phase III award from NASA for solid oxide fuel cell system development and evaluation supporting Mars applications (awarded August 28, 2025); a $1.9 million Army SBIR Phase II Sequential award for direct hydrogen production from sunlight and water (awarded September 12, 2025); a $1.78 million SBIR Phase III effort with Army TACOM for fuel cell development (awarded December 1, 2023); a $1.744 million ONR Phase III SBIR award for a mitigation system addressing battery thermal runaway events in naval power systems (awarded March 3, 2025); and a $2 million Army contract for JP-8 fueled electrified combat vehicles (awarded March 30, 2026). Recent smaller awards include a $224,955 SBIR Phase I from Department of Commerce for high-efficiency power generation for ultra-long-range unmanned aerial systems (awarded September 30, 2026) and a $209,517.69 Army contract for a regenerable absorption-based continuous CO2 removal (RACCR) system for closed-circuit rebreathers (awarded September 16, 2025). The vendor also carries one federal supply schedule vehicle, GSA Schedule GS22F0053B, with four task orders.

Grant recipient activity includes Department of Energy Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA-E) cooperative agreements for modular catalytic element systems to destroy ventilation air methane from coal production (REMEDY program, $1.777 million, awarded May 14, 2026) and for electrochemical microchip paired with energetic fuels for MW-hr electrified propulsion (JOULES-1K/EMPOWER program, awarded July 1, 2024). Precision Combustion also holds ARPA-E cooperative agreements for additively manufactured electrochemical-chip based scalable solid oxide fuel cells (awarded April 18, 2022) and SOFCs for flight under the REEACH Phase 2 program (awarded November 1, 2023). Department of Energy Office of Science Project Grants fund reversible solid oxide fuel cell corrosion resistance studies, improved SIPH thermal particles for decarbonization of chemical production, thermally stable metallic membranes for hydrogen generation with CO2 capture, and atmospheric CO2 capture research. NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) awarded a $174,922 Project Grant (awarded April 1, 2025) for early-stage feasibility studies of visionary aerospace concepts. The Department of Agriculture Institute of Food Safety and Nutrition funded a photocatalytic oxidation system for ethylene control in produce storage ($206,374 grant, awarded July 1, 2022). Precision Combustion serves as a sub-recipient on a Department of Energy grant to Marquette University for multi-fuel CPOx reformer development (sub-award date October 30, 2024) and performed subcontract work for Honeywell International on development of a flight-like advanced material reactor for hydrogen recovery (sub-award date May 6, 2026).

Award activity shows volatility over the past five years — 13 awards in 2022, declining to 6 in 2023 and 9 in 2024, rebounding to 13 in 2025, then dropping to 4 so far in 2026 (the portfolio snapshot reflects data through mid-October 2026). Eleven awards with combined potential value of $16.2 million reach ultimate completion within the next twenty-four months, representing material recompete exposure. The portfolio carries a combined potential value of $99.3 million against combined obligated dollars of $162 million, reflecting prior-year drawdown on multi-year development contracts. Across 241 total awards spanning 1989 to 2026, the vendor has served 36 distinct federal agencies, with category concentration anchored in research and development NAICS (60 awards in "Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Biotechnology)") and PSC codes dominated by space R&D services and defense systems electronics research.

Service Contract Inventory data, which captures federal service contracts above the $150,000 reporting threshold and excludes goods, products, and research awards, shows $3.6 million in invoiced revenue in FY2025 across 6.2 FTEs. SCI does not capture the bulk of Precision Combustion's federal activity — the company's award footprint is dominated by research contracts and grant awards that fall outside the SCI reporting scope. Across SCI-reportable prime contracts, the vendor performed 0% of work through subcontractors, indicating full self-performance on service-contract-eligible components of its federal portfolio.

Research, development, manufacturing and testing of clean and efficient power generation and air revitalization systems utilizing catalysts and/or sorbents.