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[Due to the increasing size of the archives, each topic page now contains only the prior 365 days of content. Access to older stories is now solely through the Monthly Archive pages or the site search function.]
Proterra Fuel Cell Hybrid Bus in DoD Hydrogen Energy Cycle Pilot Project
July 11, 2009
Colorado-based Proterra LLC, a manufacturer of electric drive commercial transportation solutions (battery-electric and range-extended EVs) from city transit buses to class 4-8 trucks (earlier post), will provide a hydrogen fuel cell hybrid bus (earlier post) for use a US Department of Defense (DoD) pilot project designed to test an end-to-end clean hydrogen energy cycle.
Led by the Center for Transportation and the Environment (CTE), the pilot project will include all elements of a clean hydrogen energy cycle, including local hydrogen generation via waste water treatment digester gas cleanup and reformation; bulk hydrogen storage, transport and dispensing; and hydrogen load in the form of 19 fuel-cell powered electric forklifts and Proterra’s fuel cell powered bus.
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European Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Technology Initiative Launches €140M Call for Proposals
July 03, 2009
The European Fuel Cells and Hydrogen (FCH) Joint Technology Initiative (JTI) has issued a second call for proposals for research. Around €140 million (US$196 million) has been allocated to this second call, with €71.3 million by the Commission matched by in-kind contributions of the industrial partners. The FCH JTI, an EU-wide collaborative private-public partnership, has a total budget amounts around €1 billion (US$1.4 billion) to be invested in hydrogen and fuel cell research and development by 2014. (Earlier post.)
The 29 project topics in the second call aim to put fuel cell and hydrogen energy technologies on the market two to five years sooner than what is estimated without the support the JTI offers. Selected teams of researchers will investigate bottlenecks in the whole range of applications for these energy technologies, from cars to large scale power plants, as well as the whole supply chain from hydrogen production to demonstration of the market-readiness of applications.
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BNSF Railway and Vehicle Projects Demonstrate Experimental Hydrogen Fuelcell Hybrid Switch Locomotive
June 30, 2009
| Rear view of the fuelcell hybrid switch locomotive. The dual Ballard fuel cell stacks are to the left (i.e., rear) of the switcher. Source: Vehicle Projects. Click to enlarge. |
BNSF Railway and Vehicle Projects Inc. of Denver/Golden, Colo., a developer of large fuelcell vehicles such as mine loaders and mine locomotives, unveiled an operational hydrogen fuelcell hybrid switch locomotive at BNSF’s Topeka System Maintenance Terminal. (Earlier post.)
Following its introduction, the locomotive is heading to the Transportation Test Center in Pueblo, Colo., for additional testing. Late this summer or early fall, depending on the outcome of the testing, the locomotive will go into service in the Los Angeles Basin, where it will face the test of actual service in the railroad environment.
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California Air Resources Board Pushes for Restoration of DOE Funding for Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicles; Tackles the “Four Miracles”
June 19, 2009
California Air Resources Board Chairman Mary Nichols met with US Energy Secretary Steven Chu in May and followed up that meeting with a letter, urging the continuation of funding to support research, development and deployment of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles. Nichols is also requesting a follow-on meeting between ARB technical staff, DOE technical staff and the several automakers pursuing fuel cell vehicles to continue the “dialog and investigation”.
The Obama Administration’s 2010 Department of Energy (DOE) budget proposes cutting the federal hydrogen fuel cell research and deployment budget by more than two-thirds ($130 million), eliminating funds for the hydrogen fuel cell vehicle program and market transformation programs. (Earlier post.)
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UK Company to Introduce Hydrogen Fuel Cell Urban Car; Open Source Approach
June 14, 2009
| Cutaway of the Hyrban. Ultracapacitor bank is beneath the seat. Click to enlarge. |
UK-based Riversimple will unveil on Tuesday (16 June) its first production-intent car: a two seater hydrogen fuel cell urban car with composite bodyshell. Riversimple designed the Hyrban (earier post) to achieve 300 mpg (energy equivalent); the company calculates that the fuel cell car will have well-to-wheel CO2 emissions of 31 g/km when fueled with hydrogen produced via steam methane reforming of natural gas.
The Hyrban has a top speed of 50 mph (80 km/h), can accelerate from 0 - 30 mph in 5.5 seconds, and has a range of more than 200 miles (320 km). Riversimple, founded by Hugo Spowers, a former motorsport engineer and racing driver, earlier initiated the hydrogen LIFECar project through its subsidiary OSCar Automotive Ltd. (earlier post).
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California-to-Canada Road Tour is Finale for Daimler’s A-Class F-CELL; B-Class F-CELL Due to Customers by End of 2009
May 26, 2009
| A cutaway model of the future B-Class F-CELL. Click to enlarge. |
Daimler’s A-Class F-CELL hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle will cap five years of road trials in the US with its participation in the California to Canada Hydrogen Road Tour 09 (earlier post). The recently converted A-Class F-CELL “plus” with 700 bar technology will participate in the tour along with hydrogen-powered vehicles from other automakers. The new 700 bar technology extends the range in the current vehicle generation by about 70%.
A fleet of 30 A-Class F-CELL vehicles has been in daily use on public roads in the US since 2004. The program includes fleet and infrastructure trials supported by the states of California and Michigan. After the tour, the A-Class F-CELL will be replaced by Daimler’s next generation of fuel cell vehicles: the B-Class F-CELL (earlier post), Daimler’s first fuel cell vehicle produced in a small volume series, but under full series development processes.
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Hydrogen Fuel Cell Hybrid Street Sweeper Debuts in Basel; Up to 40% WTW CO2 Reduction Compared to Diesel
May 25, 2009
| The Bucher CityCat H2 hydrogen street sweeper. Click to enlarge. |
Basel, Switzerland is testing the world’s first hydrogen fuel-cell street sweeper, developed by a Swiss research consortium led by the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Testing and Research (EMPA) and the Paul Scherrer Institute.
EMPA computer simulations showed that the fuel cell system could halve the tank-to-wheels energy consumption of the street sweeper compared to a conventional diesel engine. This enables a full well-to-wheels reduction of CO2 emissions of around 40%—even with conventional hydrogen production from natural gas—compared to the diesel system.
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Argonne Lifecycle Analysis Calculates WTW Petroleum Energy Use and GHG Emissions for PHEVs Fueled With Petroleum, E85 and Hydrogen
May 14, 2009
| Summary of WTW petroleum energy use and GHG emissions for combined CD and CS operations relative to baseline gasoline ICEV. Single markers indicate conventional hybrids. Click to enlarge. |
Researchers at Argonne National Laboratory have published results of a well-to-wheels (WTW) lifecycle analysis of petroleum energy use and greenhouse gas emissions of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles employing gasoline, diesel, E85 and hydrogen (fuel cell) fuels, with an all-electric range between 10 to 40 miles.
Compared to an internal combustion vehicle fueled with gasoline, PHEVs that employed petroleum fuels (gasoline and diesel) offered a 40-60% reduction in petroleum energy use and a 30-60% reduction in GHG emissions. PHEVs fueled by E85 offered a 70-90% reduction in petroleum energy use and a 40-80% reduction in GHG emissions. PHEVs equipped with hydrogen fuel cells offered a more than 90% reduction in petroleum energy use and a 10-100% reduction in GHG emissions.
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Proton Motor Previews “Triple-Hybrid” Electric Drive Passenger Bus
May 13, 2009
Proton Motor Fuel Cell GmbH, a subsidiary of Proton Power Systems plc, a designer, developer and producer of fuel cells and fuel cell electric hybrid systems, has previewed the first passenger bus using the company’s “triple-hybrid” fuel cell system. The presentation took place in Puchheim, near Munich on 8 May, with an official unveiling and handover to take place this summer in Prague.
The new vehicle is the product of a cooperation agreement between Skoda Electric, UJV Nuclear Research Institute Rez plc and Proton Motor. As a manufacturer of trolley buses and electric-powered rail vehicles, Skoda Electric was responsible for the vehicle, including its electric drive system and system integration. The project was coordinated by UJV, a leading research institution in the Czech Republic. Proton Motor supplied the propulsion system.
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Next-Generation Citaro FuelCELL Hybrid Debuts in June
May 09, 2009
| The new Citaro FuelCELL Hybrid. Click to enlarge. |
The new Mercedes-Benz Citaro FuelCELL Hybrid bus will have its world premiere from 7-11 June at the UITP Congress in Vienna (the World Congress of the International Association of Public Transport). (Earlier post.) This fuel cell hybrid bus is the first representative of the new generation of fuel cell models from Daimler Buses.
Daimler said that the Citaro FuelCELL Hybrid is the next logical step on the path to zero-emission public transport which the company had already announced it would take, and thus represents an important element in the development of the mobility solutions of the future.
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$26.4B DOE FY 2010 Budget Request Cuts Funding for Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicles; With Recovery Act Funding Boosts Support for PHEVs, Biomass and Biorefineries
May 07, 2009
| The budget picture for the DOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. FY 2010 Budget requests are in green, the FY 2009 additional appropriation (Recovery Act funding) is in red. Electrification of transportation is receiving a major infusion of investment. Click to enlarge. |
President Barack Obama’s Fiscal Year 2010 $26.4 billion budget request to Congress for the Department of Energy increases investments in a number of areas, including investments in basic science and plug-in and hybrid electric vehicles and biofuels. It also scales back in areas such as oil and gas company research and moves away from funding vehicular hydrogen fuel cells to technologies “with more immediate promise,” according to Energy Secretary Steven Chu.
The budget request represents a 21.8% decrease against the FY 2009 Appropriation of $33.7 billion for DOE. However, the FY 2010 budget complements the $38.7 billion the Department of Energy will invest as part of American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
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European Automotive Industry Outlines R&D Priorities for EU Green Car Initiative
European automotive suppliers and vehicle manufacturers have united to submit a series of R&D priorities to the European Commission to shape the European Green Car Initiative (EGCI), announced by the EU. CLEPA (the European umbrella membership organization representing the interests of the global automotive supply industry) and EUCAR (the European Council for Automotive R&D from the major European passenger car and commercial vehicle manufacturers) jointly prepared the document.
The Green Car Initiative, a part of the European economic recovery plan, aims to allocate €5 billion (US$6.7 billion) through a Public Private Partnership to bolster innovation in the automotive sector and sustain its focus on environmental progress. The initiative complements the European Clean Transport Facility which, through the European Investment Bank, serves to provide more immediate financial relief to the sector.
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California Energy Commission Adopts $176M Green Transportation Plan
April 23, 2009
The California Energy Commission has adopted the state’s first transportation Investment Plan. The Alternative and Renewable Fuels and Vehicle Technology Program’s Investment Plan allocates $176 million over the next two years to stimulate green transportation projects and encourage innovation to help meet the state’s aggressive climate change policies.
The Alternative and Renewable Fuels Vehicle Technology Program was established by Assembly Bill 118 (Núñez, Chapter 750, Statutes of 2007) and is an essential element of the California's climate change and energy policies. The state is aggressively working to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 80% below 1990 levels by 2050, decrease petroleum fuel use to 15% below 2003 levels by 2020, and increase alternative fuel use to 20% by 2020.
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DOE to Award $41.9M in Recovery Funds to Spur Growth of Fuel Cell Markets
April 16, 2009
The US Department of Energy (DOE) is awarding $41.9 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funding to 13 projects to accelerate the commercialization and deployment of fuel cells and to create jobs in fuel cell manufacturing, installation, maintenance, and support services. Funded projects include stationary, portable and specialty vehicle applications. Total project funding of nearly $114.3 million will include approximately $72.4 million in cost-share funding from industry participants in addition to the Federal money.
The $41.9 million will support immediate deployment of nearly 1,000 fuel cell systems for emergency backup power and material handling applications (e.g., forklifts) that have emerged as key early markets in which fuel cells can compete with conventional power technologies. Additional systems will be used to accelerate the demonstration of stationary fuel cells for combined heat and power in the larger residential and commercial markets.
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Study Finds That CO2 Standards for Vehicles Can Reduce Price of Oil
April 10, 2009
| Car fleet composition in the EU under the different scenarios. Click to enlarge. |
A new study by the French institute Enerdata, commissioned by the European Federation for Transport & Environment (T&E), suggests that the European CO2 standards for new vehicles due to come into effect in 2012 will lead not only to a European savings on oil (mainly via lower oil import volumes) but also to slightly lower global oil prices. Enerdata concluded that a 0.9% reduction in global oil consumption results in a drop in global oil prices of 1.2%.
Most analyses of the economic assessments of energy efficiency measures normally use fixed oil prices when accounting for economic benefits. By working out that the price of oil will fall when the EU’s regulations fully take effect, the study suggests that the European economic benefits of fuel efficiency have been underestimated, in general by up to 17%, according to T&E.
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Researchers Achieve Major Advance in Performance of Non-Precious Metal Catalysts for PEM Fuel Cells
April 06, 2009
| Comparison of the best NPMC (non-precious metal catalyst) in this work with a Pt-based catalyst. Lefèvre et al. (2009). Click to enlarge. |
Researchers at Institut National de la Recherche Scientifique, Énergie, Matériaux et Télécommunication in Quebec, Canada, report a major advance in the use of non-precious metal catalysts for PEM fuel cells. In a study published 3 April in the journal Science, they describe a new synthetic route for inexpensive iron-based catalysts that can equal the performance of a platinum-based cathode with a loading of 0.4 milligram of platinum per square centimeter at a cell voltage of ≥0.9 volt.
One of the obstacles to commercializing hydrogen fuel cell vehicles is the cost of the fuel cells themselves. Polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) cells, widely studied for such mobile applications, generally use carbon-supported platinum (Pt/C) catalysts at the electrodes. Much research has gone into replacing platinum with less expensive substitutes. (Earlier post, earlier post.)
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Mazda Begins Commercial Leasing of Hybrid Rotary Hydrogen Vehicle
March 25, 2009
| Transparent view of Mazda Premacy Hydrogen RE Hybrid. Battery pack and hydrogen tank are at the rear. Click to enlarge. |
Mazda Motor Corporation has begun commenced commercial leasing of the Mazda Premacy Hydrogen RE Hybrid (earlier post), a hydrogen hybrid vehicle that offers substantially improved performance due to the addition of a hybrid system. Mazda is the first automobile manufacturer to begin commercial leasing of a hydrogen hybrid vehicle; the first units will be delivered to local government authorities and energy-related companies during 2009.
The Premacy Hydrogen RE Hybrid features a series-hybrid drivetrain, which combines Mazda’s hydrogen rotary engine with an electric motor. The engine output is converted to electricity, which then powers the motor that drives the wheels.
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FTA Report on Worldwide H2 Bus Demonstrations Finds Better Than Expected Performance and Strong Customer Acceptance; Challenges Remain
March 20, 2009
The US Federal Transit Administration (FTA) has published a report summarizing interviews with participants in the hydrogen-powered buses trials underway in more than 20 cities around the world from 2002 to 2007. These included buses powered by fuel cells or hydrogen-fueled internal combustion engines, as well as a variety of fueling and related technologies.
The report gathers insights from demonstration participants at transit agencies in the United States, Europe, China, Japan and Australia, analyzes lessons learned, identifies key remaining challenges, and suggests potential roles for government in supporting commercialization. Among the findings were that the performance of the fuel cell stacks exceeded expectations, but the batteries and supporting components experienced significant challenges.
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Argonne Devises New Variable Combustion Strategy for Hydrogen-Fueled Engines
March 14, 2009
Researchers at the US Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory’s Center for Transportation Research have devised new variable combustion strategy for hydrogen-fueled engines using the Lab’s Modular Automotive Technology Testbed (MATT).
As they put the engine through its paces, Argonne’s researchers evaluate the fuel economy and emissions generated by different combustion strategies. Argonne engineer Henning Lohse-Busch and his colleagues developed an optimal variable air-fuel ratio combustion strategy that allows a hydrogen internal combustion engine to run efficiently and cleanly in a conventional vehicle.
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High-Pressure Direct-Injection Hydrogen Engine Achieves Efficiency of 42%; On Par with Turbodiesels
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| H2BVplus hydrogen combustion engine. Click to enlarge. |
The BMW Group Forschung und Technik, in cooperation with researchers in Graz and Vienna, Austria, has developed a dedicated (i.e., monovalent) hydrogen combustion engine with diesel-like geometry and progressive H2 high-pressure direct-injection technology. The result is an efficiency level of up to 42%, on par with that of the best turbodiesel engines.
The “H2BVplus” project is aimed at investigating a hydrogen self-ignition combustion process. Current hydrogen combustion engines are spark-ignited. Sponsored by Austria’s Federal Ministry for Transportation, Innovation and Technology (BMVIT), project partners include BMW, the Institute for Internal Combustion Engines and Thermodynamics at Graz University of Technology, HyCentA Research GmbH in Graz, as well as HOERBIGER ValveTec GmbH in Vienna.
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ARB Chairman Characterizes Ideological Debate Between Hydrogen and Batteries as “Madness”
February 23, 2009
California Air Resources Board (ARB) Chairman Mary Nichols characterized the sometimes contentious, ideological debate between those who advocate for hydrogen fuel cells and those who advocate for batteries as the ultimate enabler of low-carbon transportation as “madness” from the point of view of a regulator.
Chairman Nichols made the comment during a keynote at the third annual UC Berkeley Energy Symposium, presented by the Berkeley Energy & Resources Collaborative (BERC), that focused on policy and legislative activity in the context of California’s climate change efforts.
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East Penn Manufacturing and Nuvera Fuel Cells Provide 20 Fuel Cell/Battery Hybrid Units for Forklift Demonstration
February 10, 2009
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| ReadyPower 750 Ah hybrid fuel cell/battery power pack. Source: Nuvera. Click to enlarge. |
East Penn Manufacturing and Nuvera Fuel Cells have supplied 20 ReadyPower fuel cell/battery hybrid units to the Susquehanna Defense Distribution Supply Depot (DDSP) in New Cumberland, PA. The units have been installed into 20 Yale forklift trucks as part of a two-year demonstration project run by the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA).
The ReadyPower units will be run at the DDSP in regular operation consisting of two shifts a day, five days a week, and will be compared to the performance that would have been attained using standard motive batteries.
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US DOE Issues Request for Information on Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Market Development; Reports to Congress on Program
February 05, 2009
The US Department of Energy (DOE) Hydrogen Program has issued a Request for Information (RFI) on potential early markets and deployment opportunities for hydrogen and fuel cells. The information gathered is intended to help DOE to identify key early markets, validate hydrogen and fuel cell system performance through data collection and communicate results, cultivate demand and accelerate market development, and reduce non-technical barriers that hinder market penetration.
At the end of January, DOE also issued the Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Activities, Progress, and Plans Report to Congress as required by the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPACT). Among its findings, the report notes that in DOE’s assessment, “although significant progress has been made”, fuel cell cost is still too high and durability still too low to enable industry to meet the deployment goal of 100,000 hydrogen-fueled vehicles by 2010, as specified in EPACT.
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Eden Energy Sells Off HyRadix and Other Assets; Hythane Remains a Core Focus
January 22, 2009
Australia-based Eden Energy has sold all the shares in its two US subsidiary companies: Eden Cryogenics LLC, which has two operating businesses (Eden Cryogenics and Cryogenic Technical Services which manufacture cryogenic equipment and supply cryogenic design services) and Eden Hydrogen Inc which operates the business known as HyRadix which manufactures hydrogen reformers.
Eden acquired US-based HyRadix, a company specializing in on-site autothermal reforming systems for the production of hydrogen from methane or LPG, in 2007. (Earlier post.)
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US Fuel Cell Council Pushes Congress for $1.17B for Hydrogen, Fuel Cell and Infrastructure Programs
December 30, 2008
The US Fuel Cell Council (USFCC), an industry association formed to foster the commercialization of fuel cells in the United State, is asking Congress to put $1.17 billion into fuel cells, hydrogen and infrastructure.
Fully funding programs of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPACT) at levels Congress has already approved for FY2010, and use of other authorized funds, would account for the $1.17 billion. The US Fuel Cell Council would like to see the money applied in six basic areas: deployment programs; development of a refueling infrastructure; learning demonstrations; building domestic manufacturing capability; accelerating public-private research; and investing in fuel cell transit programs.
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Study Concludes Wind-Powered BEV and Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicles Best Options, Biofuels the Worst to Address Climate, Energy Security and Pollution
December 13, 2008
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| A combined weighted ranking of the 12 combinations of energy sources and vehicle type against 11 impact categories. Click to enlarge. |
A new study by Stanford University professor Mark Jacobson (earlier post) reviews and ranks major proposed energy-related solutions to global warming, air pollution, and energy security while considering impacts of the solutions on eleven different factors ranging from resource availability to mortality. To place electricity and liquid fuel options on an equal footing, Jacobson considered 12 combinations of energy sources and vehicle type: nine electric power sources (solar-PV, CSP, wind, geothermal, hydroelectric, wave, tidal, nuclear, and coal with CCS) and two liquid fuel options (corn-E85, cellulosic E85) in combination with three vehicle technologies (battery-electric, BEVs; hydrogen fuel cell, HFCVs; and flex-fuel E85 vehicles).
The overall rankings of the combinations (from best to worst) were: (1) wind-powered battery-electric vehicles (BEVs); (2) wind-powered hydrogen fuel cell vehicles; (3) concentrated-solar-powered-BEVs; (4) geothermal-powered-BEVs; (5) tidal-powered-BEVs; (6) solar-photovoltaic-powered-BEVs; (7) wave-powered-BEVs; (8) hydroelectric-powered-BEVs; (9-tie) nuclear-powered-BEVs; (9-tie) coal-with-carbon-capture-powered-BEVs; (11) corn-E85 vehicles; and (12) cellulosic-E85 vehicles. His findings are published online in an open access article in the journal Energy & Environmental Science.
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VW Highlights Three Fuel-Cell Vehicle Prototypes at LA Auto Show
November 19, 2008
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| The Tiguan HyMotion fuel cell concept uses a VW-developed high-temperature fuel cell stack. Click to enlarge. |
Volkswagen came to the Los Angeles Auto Show to tout the efficiency and performance of its diesel powertrains and the recent market success of the Jetta Clean Diesels in the US, as well as to introduce the new Touareg V6 TDI.
However, the company said it was also casting an eye to the future with its presentation of three fuel cell prototypes: the Tiguan, a compact SUV; the Touran, a compact minivan; and the Passat Lingyu, a sedan customized for use in China (earlier post). In Germany, the Tiguan and Touran are the most successful cars in their class. The same is true of the Passat Lingyu in China. All three zero emissions vehicles were available for test drives at the show.
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Europe Launches Major Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Push with €1B JTI
October 15, 2008
Representatives of industry, the research community and the European institutions launched the €1 billion (US$1.357 billion) Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Joint Technology Initiative (JTI) (earlier post) at an event in Brussels, Belgium on 14 October.
Over the next six years, the European Commission and industry will invest almost €500 million each into the initiative, with the aim of accelerating the development of hydrogen and fuel cell technologies and bringing them to the market by 2020. The EC estimates that the JTI’s activities will reduce the time to market for these technologies by two to five years.
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Atlantic Hydrogen Licenses Hydrogen Enriched Natural Gas Plasma Technology to Rosetti Marino
September 17, 2008
Canada-based Atlantic Hydrogen (AHI) has licensed its technology for the on-site production of hydrogen enriched natural gas (HENG) for the vehicle refueling and small power generation markets to Rosetti Marino, a large engineering and construction contractor of offshore platforms and process modules located in northern Italy.
AHI’s CarbonSaver is an in-line pulsed plasma discharge reactor that separates hydrogen from methane molecules (CH4) while rendering the carbon as a solid (which appears to be a high-quality nano-structured material). Put another way, it is a plasma reformer that can produce hydrogen from methane without the generation of greenhouse gases during the process.
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EIA: PHEV40s Could Come Close to Matching Energy and Emissions Benefits of Fuel Cell Vehicles
September 13, 2008
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| Full fuel cycle CO2 emissions for PHEV40s and FCVs with 2x (top) and 3x (bottom) baseline fuel economy, under different H2 production scenarios. Click to enlarge. |
The US Energy Information Administration (EIA) has published an analysis of the impacts on US energy import dependence and emission reductions resulting from the commercialization of advanced hydrogen and fuel cell technologies in the transportation and distributed generation markets.
Among its findings, the report concludes that successful deployment of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles (FCVs) is dependent on several concurrent R&D successes and investments within the next 25 years. At the same time, other promising technologies such as plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) offer opportunities for major reductions in petroleum use and CO2 emissions from light-duty vehicles (LDVs).
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European Parliament Adopts Legislative Report for EU Type Approval of Hydrogen Vehicles; Support for Hydrogen Blends and European Hydrogen Filling Station Network
September 05, 2008
The European Parliament adopted a legislative report proposing the establishment of harmonized technical provisions for the type approval of hydrogen-powered vehicles for the first time. There is a need to introduce EU-wide approval criteria for such vehicles, to safeguard not only the operation of the single market but also to ensure a high level of safety and environmental protection, according to the Parliament.
Since hydrogen-powered vehicles are not currently included in the EC type-approval system, Member States may grant approvals for such vehicles on a one-time basis without having to lay down new laws. In such a practice there is a risk that every Member State will draw up its own approval conditions.
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Ford Extends Current Fuel Cell Vehicle Fleet Program with DOE for 24 Months Prior to Next Gen System
August 21, 2008
Encouraged by the success of its fleet of 30 fuel cell vehicles, Ford recently reached an agreement with the US Department of Energy (DOE) to extend its three-year-old hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicle program for up to 24 months, until the next generation system is ready for deployment in the 2010 timeframe.
According to Ford’s global fuel cell team, the first generation Focus Fuel Cell vehicles have lasted three times longer and worked much better than originally expected with virtually no degradation in performance. In light of that success, the DOE, which shares the program’s operating cost with Ford, agreed to extend the program.
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NRC Study: Supporting a Transition to Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicles in the US Will Require About $200B Over Next 16 Years
July 17, 2008
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| Total annual expenditures for vehicles and hydrogen supply for transition to the breakeven year for the Hydrogen Success case, excluding RD&D costs. Cumulative public-private cost totals $184 billion, of which 91% is the cost of fuel cell vehicles and 9% is the cost of hydrogen supply. An additional $16 billion in RD&D costs over the period brings the overall to $200 billion. Click to enlarge. |
While hydrogen fuel cell vehicles (HFCVs) could alleviate US dependence on oil in transportation and significantly reduce US emissions of carbon dioxide, bringing the technology from its current state to market viability will require substantial time and additional investment, according to a new study by the National Research Council.
The study estimates a total public-private investment of about $200 billion would be required from 2008 to 2023, at which point fuel cell vehicles would become competitive with gasoline-powered vehicles. The government cost to support the transition would be roughly $55 billion. This funding includes a substantial research and development program ($5 billion), support for the demonstration and deployment of the vehicles while they are more expensive than conventional vehicles ($40 billion), and support for the production of hydrogen ($10 billion).
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Westport Innovations in Alt-Fuel Vehicle JV with China’s Largest Heavy-Duty Engine Manufacturer
July 16, 2008
Westport Innovations Inc.; Weichai Power Co. Ltd, China’s largest heavy-duty engine manufacturer; and Hong Kong Peterson (CNG) Equipment Limited have formed a joint venture—Weichai Westport Inc. (WWI)—to research, develop, design, manufacture, market, distribute and sell advanced, alternative fuel engines (plus relevant parts and kits) for use in automobiles, heavy-duty trucks, power generation and shipping applications.
Westport supplies a range of systems such as HPDI (earlier post) and H2DI (earlier post) enabling engines to operate on cleaner-burning gaseous fuels such as compressed natural gas (CNG), liquefied natural gas (LNG), hydrogen-natural gas blends (HCNG), hydrogen and biofuels such as landfill gas. Westport’s joint venture with Cummins Inc.—Cummins Westport Inc.—manufactures and sells low-emissions alternative fuel engines for commercial transportation applications such as trucks and buses.
