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The quest for the holy grail
By Lou Ann Hammond
Twenty hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, a hydrogen reformer, a mobile hydrogen refueler and numerous other technologies make the trek through Sacramento, Davis, Martinez, Berkeley, Oakland, San Jose, San Carlos and San Francisco. On the way you'll find government officials, birkenstock wearers, energy (oil) companies and Mayors of cities in California looking for answers, asking questions.
On Thursday, September 29,2005 Governor Schwarzenegger signed ten bills to encourage alternative fuels and to protect the environment. A couple of bills of interest were;
SB 975 by Senator Roy Ashburn (R-Bakersfield) that encourages use of biodiesel and permits public agencies and utilities to use biodiesel fuel in retrofitted vehicles. Californians are not allow to buy diesel vehicles in California because America's diesel fuel is so dirty.
AB 515 by Assemblymember Keith Richman (R-Northridge) that allows private entities to lease space for solar photovoltaic panels adjacent to the State Water project. Creating hydrogen by solar power is recognized as the most efficient and cleanest way of making hydrogen. One way of creating hydrogen is through electrolysis of water. It takes one gallon of water to create 30 miles worth of travel in a hydrogen vehicle.
AB 1007 by Assemblymember Fran Pavley (D-Agoura Hills) that requires the development and adoption of a state plan to increase the use of alternative fuels by 2007. This could come as close to an energy policy the United States has achieved since President Bush told us to conserve gas.
California is recognized as being in the forefront of clean air and one of Governor Schwarzenegger's soapbox issues is the hydrogen highway. There is actually a California Hydrogen Blueprint Plan that is updated annually and the message from Governor Schwarzenegger sends a clear message
"I am going to encourage the building of a hydrogen highway to take us to the environmental future...I intend to show the world that economic growth and the environment can coexist.
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"And if you want to see it, then come to California."
And if you were in Northern California this week, you would have seen a convoy of fuel cell vehicles traversing the highways and byways of California.
These vehicles are not your one-off models that can go 84 mpg, but can't fit anyone over 5'8" in the car. In the old days these cars would be known as sleepers; cars that look like any other car on the road. They look remarkably unremarkable in appearance, but underneath the sheet metal is an enhanced powertrain or a fuel cell or a battery that packs torque.
Fuel cells release energy caused by the reaction of hydrogen and oxygen with a catalyst. The only emissions from a fuel cell vehicle are heat and water.
Each vehicle and Manufacturer is studying different aspects of their fuel cell vehicles. Some Manufacturers have no batteries (though GM has added a Lithium Ion battery to their next generation fuel cell vehicle), some have NiMH and some have L-Ion batteries. Johnson Controls just announced a high-technology laboratory in Milwaukee, Wisconsin to create Lithium-Ion batteries for future Hybrid Vehicles. Johnson Controls is the largest supplier of aftermarket batteries and they believe that Lithium-Ion technology will replace Nickel Metal Hydride (NimH) batteries in hybrids. Look at the fuel-cell vehicles below and note which ones still have NiMH batteries and which are transferring to L-Ion.
Some have stop and start strategies on their vehicles, like a hybrid that shuts down the ICE when at a stop. Some use compressed hydrogen and/or liquid hydrogen. The military vehicle has two fuel cell stacks and two electric motors. All of the vehicles have weird little grunts and groans, but the engineers want to hear those noises before they take them away from the buying public. The bigger issues to be resolved by all Manufacturers and suppliers are;
cold-start - the fuel cell stack has problems starting in cold weather
durability
power density
cost - Mike Rosenberg from Ballard fuel cell stacks said that their fuel cell costs about $103/kW. The Department of Energy (DOE) requires the cost to be below $30/kW. Rosenberg says they should be at $85/kW by 2005 and perhaps at $30/kW by 2010. Once that reality is met it will be 3-5 years of design and production before a Manufacturer will have a vehicle to market. Al Weverstad of General Motors says he is confident that General Motors will meet the DOE required number and have a car that can be mass-produced by 2010. So the last obstacle, the one Larry Burns, Vice President of Research and Development of General Motors has said would keep them from mass producing fuel cell vehicles is;
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Infrastructure.
A couple of the questions I posed to people at the convention were;
If solar is the most economical and efficient way to create hydrogen why are we not demanding/requiring that all newly built homes have a solar roof? Honda is building a hydrogen home refueling system that could use solar at the home to create enough hydrogen to fuel one's tank for 10,000 miles. Even if we started producing fuel cell vehicles now, using solar, the United States would still need all the oil for the old cars and for heating.
What about the water that comes out the tailpipe? The water is below boiling point so it doesn't turn to vapor. It takes one gallon of water to make 30 miles of energy and during those 30 miles one gallon of water is expelled from the tailpipe. Why not recapture that water and recycle it back into the hydrogen creator when you are refilling your tank?
Does hydrogen leak from the Earth's atmosphere and if so, does it cause damage? Think of accidents with an internal combustion engine. The fuel drops because it's heavier than air. Hydrogen is lighter than air. Hydrogen will dissipate into the Earth's atmosphere and if it is not burned it will generally react with the Earth's gases, but there is a question of what percentage may not react and will escape. David Grinspoon, author of Lonely planet, says that "yes, hydrogen does leak out of the Earth's atmosphere. Being the lightest element it is hard for any gravitational well to contain, so hydrogen is streaming into space at some rate from all planetary bodies. If hydrogen leaked from a fuel cell some of it would eventually be lost to space, though surely some of it would react with other gasses and wind up in other parts of the atmosphere, oceans and biosphere."
When the road rally started it was almost a contest to see how ugly the car could be with all the cool new technology inside. The closer we get to a mass-marketed vehicle, the more sedate the cars become. We are not close enough to mass production to worry about the cooler designs; the infrastructure and the vehicle issues still have to be resolved.
2005 Hydrogen Road Rally Participants
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Manufacturer: Ford
Platform of Vehicle: Ford Focus
Type of Hydrogen:Compressed
Tank Size:(In trunk)5,000 psi
Power Unit: (Under the floor pan)
Battery type: Sanyo Nickel Metal Hydride (NiMH)
Fuel Cell:Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM)
Stack Maker: Ballard Mark 902 Series
Regenerative Braking: Continental Teves Electro-Hydraulic Brake (EHB) System
Integrated Powertrain: (Under the Hood)
Electric Motor: AC Induction
Peak Power: 65 kW (87 hp)
Peak Torque: 230 Nm (170 lb.-ft)
Peak Efficiency: 91 %
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| 30 customer-ready Focus FCVs are being delivered in 2005 for demonstration use in Canada (five in Vancouver), the United States and Germany. |
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Manufacturer: Chevrolet Military Fuel Cell Pickup
Platform of Vehicle: Chevy Silverado
Type of Hydrogen:Compressed
Tank Size: 10,000 psi (3 tanks) 6.3 kg
Power Unit:
Battery type: none
Fuel Cell:2 X 200 cells
Stack Maker: General Motors fuel cell Stack
Regenerative Braking: no
Integrated Powertrain:
Electric Motor: Two 3-phase asynchronous electric motor
Peak Power: 188 kW (252 hp)
Peak Torque: 317 lb.-ft
Peak Efficiency:
Driving Range: 125 miles
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| According to General Motors, "In addition to a reduction in fuel consumption and the elimination of emissions, thermal heat from the vehicle on the battlefield is reduced. Systems run quiet and cool, enhancing the opportunity for success for stealth missions. The need for separate power generation is eliminated, and water can be produced for use on the battlefield." This vehicle is the only one that has two Electric Motors and two fuel stacks.
In Brig. Gen. Roger A. Nadeau’s remarks to the press he said, "this will have a large impact on civilian lives. It will transform the U.S. Army. It will eliminate generators and trailors and decrease drivers and mechanics. Someday we could power our operations centers and mobile hospitals with hydrogen fuel units. It will put the money for soldiers where it needs to be. Our soldiers need the benefit of this technology. It will be a good return on investment."
This vehicle will be handed to Marine Corp in December 2005 |
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Manufacturer: General Motors
Platform of Vehicle: Opel Zafira minivan
Type of Hydrogen: Compressed 3.1 kg/ Liquid 4.6 kg
Tank Size: 10,000 psi
Power Unit:
Battery type: none
Fuel Cell: 94 kW (126 hp)
Stack Maker:
Regenerative Braking:
Integrated Powertrain:
Electric Motor: 3-phase asynchronous electric motor
Peak Power:
Peak Torque:
Peak Efficiency: 36%
Driving Range: 170 miles (compressed)/250 miles (liquid)
Top Speed: 100 miles per hour
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First hydrogen fuel cell vehicle certified by the Japanese government for operation on regular roads. |
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Manufacturer: Honda
Platform of Vehicle: ZC2 (no actual car platform)
Type of Hydrogen: Compressed
Tank Size: 3.75 kg
Power Unit:
Battery type: Ultra-capacitor system
Fuel Cell: Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell (PEM)
Stack Maker: Honda manufactured Stack
Regenerative Braking: yes
Integrated Powertrain:
Electric Motor: 80 kW (107 hp)
Peak Power: 86 kW (115hp)
Peak Torque: 272 Nm (201 lb.-ft of torque)
Peak Efficiency: 55%
Driving Range: 190 miles
Top Speed: 93 miles per hour
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| The platform was specially produced back in the mid 90's for the electric vehicle and has not been used with any other body style. According to Ben Knight, Honda is working on both a solar and natural gas hydrogen home refueling system. If one has a solar roof they will be able to produce hydrogen in their home. Honda has already come out with a natural gas Civic and a home refueling system (the size of a payphone) to refuel one's car with natural gas from their home. The refueling system can make enough hydrogen to fuel a car for 10,000 miles per year.
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Manufacturer: DaimlerChrysler F-Cell
Platform of Vehicle: Mercedes-Benz A-Class
Type of Hydrogen: Compressed 1.8 kg
Tank Size: 350 bar
Equivalent MPG: 56 mpg
Power Unit:
Battery type: Nickel Metal Hydride (NiMH) Sanyo
Fuel Cell: 72 kW Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM)
Stack Maker: Ballard
Regenerative Braking:
Integrated Powertrain:
Electric Motor: AC Inductor
Peak Power: 65 kW/88 hp
Peak Torque: 210 nM (156 hp)
Peak Efficiency:
Driving Range: 150 kM (93 miles)
Top Speed: 140 km/h (87 mph)
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Manufacturer: Nissan X-Trail Fuel Cell Vehicle
Platform of Vehicle: Nissan X-trail
Type of Hydrogen: Compressed
Tank Size: 5,000 psi 3.8 kg 350 bars
Power Unit:
Battery type: Nissan Lithium Ion Laminate Type
Fuel Cell: 63 kW Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM)
Stack Maker: United Technologies Company Fuel Cell (UTCFC)
Regenerative Braking: yes
Integrated Powertrain:
Electric Motor: Coaxial motor integrated with reduction gear
Peak Power: 85 kW
Peak Torque:
Peak Efficiency:
Driving Range: 350 km
Top Speed: 145 km
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Nissan employs technologies that are in the hydrogen vehicle with the electric vehicle (EV), Hybrid Electric Vehicle (HEV) and CNG technology |
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Manufacturer: Volkswagen HyMotion Fuel Cell Vehicle
Platform of Vehicle: Volkswagen Touran
Type of Hydrogen: Compressed 2.6 kg
Tank Size: 5,000 psi 350 bars
Power Unit:
Battery type: Nickel Metal Hydride (NiMH) Panasonic
Fuel Cell: 80 km PEM
Stack Maker: Ballard
Regenerative Braking: yes
Integrated Powertrain:
Electric Motor: 3-phase
Peak Power: 80kW
Peak Torque: 250 Nm
Peak Efficiency:
Driving Range: 120 miles
Top Speed: 140 km/
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Manufacturer: Hyundai Fuel Cell Vehicle Tucson
Platform of Vehicle: Hyundai Tucson
Type of Hydrogen: Compressed
Tank Size: 5,000 psi
Power Unit:
Battery type: Lithium Ion (LiPB) 152V LG Chemical
Fuel Cell: 80 kW Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM)
Stack Maker: United Technologies Company Fuel Cell (UTCFC)
Regenerative Braking: yes
Integrated Powertrain:
Electric Motor: 3-phase
Peak Power: 80 kW
Peak Torque:
Peak Efficiency:
Driving Range: 186 miles
Top Speed: 93 miles per hour
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| Mario Andretti drove this fuel cell at the grand opening of the Chevron Chino fuel station. Hyundai has consistently gotten their cold start down to -20 celsius/-4 farenheit. Cold Start is one of the big issues with fuel cell development. |
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