The problems with fossil fuels are numerous, whether or not you are a climate change denier. Fossil fuels are finite, dirty to produce, polluting to use, and make us dependent upon politically unstable areas of the world, as well as forcing us to be under the thumb of the big oil cartel OPEC. And then of course there's the effect of climate change brought about by unlocking millions of tonnes of stored carbons from fossil deposits and spraying it into the paper thin atmosphere of the earth, which is not a good thing.
So, if we could somehow free up the 1.2 billion vehicles in the world (expected to rise to 2 billion by 2035) from reliance on fossil fuels, then the benefits would be numerous.
The problems being that, historically, this has been though of in terms of moving towards battery powered electric vehicles. Whilst the likes of Tesla have proved it's possible to mass-manufacture viable electric vehicles that don't look like milk floats and have a great performance, there's still the issue of how long it takes to charge them.
For example, the Tesla S can do about 232 miles before needing to be recharged, and then would need to be charged for 9.5 hours to get up to full range again. That's fine if you can get to and from your overnight charging point within one 'tank of fuel' but if you happen to be in the middle of nowhere when you need to recharge you might as well bed down for the night. I've already covered potential developments in batteries that could cut that down to a more reasonable three minutes, but what about a technology that's available now?
That's where the Hydrogen Fuel Cell comes in. It burns the most abundant element in the universe and gives off electricity and just water as a by-product. Providing hydrogen fuel can be manufactured in sufficient quantities, hydrogen fuel cells can made efficient enough and can be complemented with a network of hydrogen refuelling points, it seems like the future is bright for this technology.
And things are starting to happen for the fuel cell. For example, Toyota has pretty much pledged its future to the production of Fuel Cell Electric Vehicles (FCEVs) and has already started rolling out its first fuel cell powered Toyota Mirai vehicles.
Likewise the Honda FCX Clarity, Nissan FCHV range, Volkswagen Hy-motion range, Mercedes NECAR and F-Cell ranges, and various other manufacturers with hydrogen vehicles already in production or at the proposal stage. In fact, the pretty much the only manufacturer not flirting with the idea is Tesla who are already too far down the track with battery powered electric vehicles and regard the production of hydrogen as being impractical.
Which brings us neatly to the question of production. There are two methods of producing hydrogen in sufficient quantities being toyed with. The first is by cracking hydrocarbons like methane, which has the twin unfortunate by-products of requiring a large amount of electricity to do the cracking and also of releasing too much waste CO2 to really be helpful in reducing greenhouse gasses. The second is by splitting water by electrolysis, which can be done by hydroelectric power stations during low electricity consumption periods or by embedded elctrolysers at refuelling stations.
It's the latter approach that, for example, Aberdeen are employing for their bus network via the HyTrec project; an initiative to convert the traditionally North Sea Oil dependent economy of the city to a sustainable alternative.The HyTrEc project aims to improve access to and advance the adoption of hydrogen as an alternative energy vector across the North Sea Region, spanning places like Aberdeen, Gateshead, Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Germany.
Some areas of the world are starting to build up their network of refuelling points too. California's Fuel Cell Partnership, for example, has a network of nearly 60 refuelling stations either already operational or due to launch.
Germany's H2 Mobility is a partnership between fuel companies like Shell, Total and Air Liquide and car companies like Toyota, Honda, Nissan, Hyundai, BMW and Volkswagen aimed at launching hydrogen refuelling stations by the end of 2015.
Now it seems like the UK is looking to follow suit with an H2 Mobility project of its own. It boasts some of the same member company names as in Germany, such as Air Liquide, Honda, Hyundai, Nissan and Toyota but it's also getting backing from places like the Department for Transport and retailers like Morrison's and Sainsbury's.
So it seems like the time for hydrogen powered cars may finally have come. Watch this space.
So, if we could somehow free up the 1.2 billion vehicles in the world (expected to rise to 2 billion by 2035) from reliance on fossil fuels, then the benefits would be numerous.
The problems being that, historically, this has been though of in terms of moving towards battery powered electric vehicles. Whilst the likes of Tesla have proved it's possible to mass-manufacture viable electric vehicles that don't look like milk floats and have a great performance, there's still the issue of how long it takes to charge them.
For example, the Tesla S can do about 232 miles before needing to be recharged, and then would need to be charged for 9.5 hours to get up to full range again. That's fine if you can get to and from your overnight charging point within one 'tank of fuel' but if you happen to be in the middle of nowhere when you need to recharge you might as well bed down for the night. I've already covered potential developments in batteries that could cut that down to a more reasonable three minutes, but what about a technology that's available now?
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| Hydrogen Fuel Cell (Source: Olympusmicro.com) |
And things are starting to happen for the fuel cell. For example, Toyota has pretty much pledged its future to the production of Fuel Cell Electric Vehicles (FCEVs) and has already started rolling out its first fuel cell powered Toyota Mirai vehicles.
 |
| Toyota Mirai |
Which brings us neatly to the question of production. There are two methods of producing hydrogen in sufficient quantities being toyed with. The first is by cracking hydrocarbons like methane, which has the twin unfortunate by-products of requiring a large amount of electricity to do the cracking and also of releasing too much waste CO2 to really be helpful in reducing greenhouse gasses. The second is by splitting water by electrolysis, which can be done by hydroelectric power stations during low electricity consumption periods or by embedded elctrolysers at refuelling stations.
It's the latter approach that, for example, Aberdeen are employing for their bus network via the HyTrec project; an initiative to convert the traditionally North Sea Oil dependent economy of the city to a sustainable alternative.The HyTrEc project aims to improve access to and advance the adoption of hydrogen as an alternative energy vector across the North Sea Region, spanning places like Aberdeen, Gateshead, Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Germany.
Some areas of the world are starting to build up their network of refuelling points too. California's Fuel Cell Partnership, for example, has a network of nearly 60 refuelling stations either already operational or due to launch.
Germany's H2 Mobility is a partnership between fuel companies like Shell, Total and Air Liquide and car companies like Toyota, Honda, Nissan, Hyundai, BMW and Volkswagen aimed at launching hydrogen refuelling stations by the end of 2015.
Now it seems like the UK is looking to follow suit with an H2 Mobility project of its own. It boasts some of the same member company names as in Germany, such as Air Liquide, Honda, Hyundai, Nissan and Toyota but it's also getting backing from places like the Department for Transport and retailers like Morrison's and Sainsbury's.
So it seems like the time for hydrogen powered cars may finally have come. Watch this space.
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