Hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles may come to the market soon,
according to the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). As part of an effort
to bring hydrogen-powered vehicles to consumer markets and lower costs,
the DOE recently completed a seven-year project evaluating the viability
of hydrogen fuel cell technology and infrastructure in real-world
settings, the agency reported.
The project was led by the DOE's National Renewable Energy Laboratory
(NREL) and received funding from the DOE's Office of Energy Efficiency
and Renewable Energy.
“The project results show that fuel cell electric vehicles have advanced
rapidly,” said Keith Wipke, acting manager of NREL’s Fuel Cell and
Hydrogen Technologies Program and the report’s lead author. “As vehicle
manufacturers and other researchers worldwide continue to focus on the
remaining challenges of balancing durability, cost and high-volume
manufacturability, there is optimism that manufacturers will introduce
FCEVs [fuel cell electric vehicles] to the market within the next few
years.”
Over the seven-year project, NREL analyzed data from more than 500,000
vehicle trips comprising 3.6 million miles. The project's goals were to
create vehicles that had a 250-mile driving range, 2,000 hours of fuel
cell durability, and a $3 per gallon gasoline equivalent for hydrogen
production costs. Of the four teams that worked on the project, at least
one team exceeded the targets, with one team achieving a 254-mile
driving range and a team showing projected average fuel cell stack
durability of 2,521 hours.
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