PNNL joins H2USA consortium on hydrogen infrastructure
19 March 2014
The Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) has joined H2USA: a consortium of automakers, energy companies, government laboratories, and others that aims to accelerate the rollout of an infrastructure for hydrogen-powered vehicles and related technologies. (Earlier post.)
H2USA was launched last year by the Department of Energy and other stakeholders. The group focuses on furthering the infrastructure for hydrogen-powered vehicles such as those powered by fuel cells. So far more than two dozen entities have joined H2USA, including the American Gas Assn., Toyota Motor North America, Mercedes-Benz USA, and other national laboratories such as the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Argonne and Sandia.
Participants in H2USA are working together to create ways to deliver affordable hydrogen fuel safely. Drivers of gasoline-powered vehicles can go just about anywhere, confident a filling station will be nearby. The pipelines necessary to move gasoline around the country have existed for decades; gas stations on street corners are a common landmark, and the trucks that haul gasoline into each station’s tanks pass without notice.
But the infrastructure required to do the same with hydrogen is in the very early stages. There are just a handful of hydrogen filling stations available to the public nationwide. Besides filling stations, planners need to consider factors such as how to move the fuel from the central manufacturing facilities to those stations.
At the same time, several major automakers have plans to unveil fuel-cell-powered vehicles for sale in the next few years. Hyundai, Honda and Toyota are poised to sell fuel-cell cars within the next two years. The consortium is helping to create the infrastructure necessary so that drivers of those cars can be confident of a fill-up nearby.
PNNL’s participation in the group builds on several contributions its scientists and engineers have already made to fuel cell technology. Recently PNNL engineers developed an app, Hydrogen Tools, which incorporates a variety of resources and web-based content to help those involved in designing, approving or using hydrogen fuel cell systems and facilities. The tool, developed with funding from DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, is available for free download through the Apple App Store.
Other PNNL engineers are managing a project testing the use of fuel cells to power refrigeration units in tractor trailers whose contents must be kept cool. That project is taking place with grocery chains in Texas, California and New York.
In addition, PNNL is a leader in hydrogen storage and hydrogen production technology development and is a member of the DOE Hydrogen Storage Engineering Center of Excellence. Several PNNL projects are aimed at inventing new ways of safely storing hydrogen on board a vehicle or lowering the cost of carbon fiber tanks, and its scientists have developed new catalysts for fuel cells and hydrogen production technologies.
PNNL also manages the Hydrogen Safety Panel, which assists DOE with identifying safety-related technical data gaps, best practices, and lessons learned. The panel, established in 2003, helps integrate safety planning into projects to ensure that all projects address and incorporate best available safety practices. The panel has reviewed more than 200 projects covering the gambit of hydrogen technology development and deployment activities. Additional projects are focused on bringing safety knowledge and experience to the hydrogen community and other stakeholders, and providing training for first responders on hydrogen safety.
They should develop small individual home water splitting systems that would run on solar energy. This would free people and the country from their dependence on foriegn oil and oil and gas companies. Our system of energy infrastructure would also then be immune to terrorist attacks, since it would be so distributed that there would be no infrastructure targets worth hitting. It would be completely renewable, the hydrogen could be stored on site for electrical production via fuel cell when the sun or wind were down. The pollution would be a bit of leaking hydrogen only. The economy for the people would boom. Oh wait, we can do that all with batteries too, which are already cheaper. Plus, do we really want free people who are not dependent on corporations? Probably not. And, doesn't our economy actually depend on terrorism and the jobs it creates? I think so. So, scratch that. No hydrogen (which will be still down the road 50 years if at all) and no batteries either. In fact, we should notify the the media outlets that they need to steer people away from batteries by doing one of their standard fear and stupidity campaigns. What? What's that? Oh, they are doing that. Okay, well, carry on then.
Posted by: Brotherkenny4 | 19 March 2014 at 01:51 PM
I await your costings for a home battery pack with the 1,000 kwh or so needed to overcome seasonal variation.
The difference between using hydrogen storage and using batteries is that hydrogen can actually make a system heavy on renewables work, batteries can't.
Come back when you have the numbers to back your opinions up.
Posted by: Davemart | 19 March 2014 at 04:14 PM
It's necessary to do the hydrogen on place at the fueling station with small efficient machineries that convert water into high energy density hydrogen gas for fuelcell cars and suvs. Sun and wind can now be harnessed soundly contrary to now that they do few energy because of bad impedance.
Posted by: gorr | 19 March 2014 at 04:59 PM
I think Davemart is a bit too optimistic; I don't think a system "heavy on renewables" (other than lake-fed hydro) can work, period. We did that once; the switch away from it was called "the industrial revolution", and only a few radicals want to go back.
Posted by: Engineer-Poet | 22 March 2014 at 11:31 AM