New Opportunity for Hydrogen Fuelled Vehicles

Abstract

New opportunities are emerging for hydrogen fuelled vehicles in pursuit of more fuel efficient and not polluting hybrid electric vehicle (HEV). The concept of such vehicle became the main goal of the FutureCar project launched by the “Partnership for a New Generation of Vehicles” (PNGV) in America. Such car should have the fuel economy of 80 miles per US gallon what corresponds to European fuel consumption measure of 3 litre per 100 km. This is three times less than fuel consumption of a mid-size family car. So, in a FutureCar three times less hydrogen would be needed for the same operating range. Furthermore, an HEV must have also electric energy stored in batteries that will complement the hydrogen energy and a smaller gas tank would be sufficient. Finally, the hybrid hydrogen electric vehicle (HHEV) would be a zero emission vehicle (ZEV). Still, the realization of such vehicle, which would also provide the customer with the required performance, driveability and comfort, requires several advanced technological solutions, which are already emerging from the R&D work initiated by the PNGV.