Hydrogen electric vehicles, advantages and disadvantages
It's not easy for manufacturers to predict the future, but almost everyone agrees that a single technology will not replace the combustion engine. This is what we were told during our visit to the Tokyo Auto Show, Didier Leroy, vice-president of management at Toyota. According to him, by 2050, fewer and fewer trips will be made on purely petrol models. Hybrids and plug-in hybrids will maintain good market share due to their great versatility, and electric battery models will also be more involved, especially in urban centers. Toyota, like Honda and several other manufacturers, also believes that the hydrogen fuel cell is an interesting solution for electrifying several types of vehicles that would be difficult to be otherwise. Buyers will have a variety of choices and their needs will dictate the technology that works best for them. Toyota has been working on hydrogen engines since 1992, well before the arrival of the Prius.
A vehicle using a hydrogen fuel cell is an electric vehicle:
Many wonder what a hydrogen vehicle is. No, it does not have an engine that burns hydrogen instead of gasoline. It is actually a 100% electric vehicle, but instead of electricity being stored in a set of batteries, it is produced from a chemical reaction of hydrogen in a fuel cell.
The electric current thus generated supply power to the electric motor, while the hydrogen contained in a tank can be filled in the space of a few minutes. By the way, we get a significant weight saving compared to a traditional electric model. Less weight, more autonomy! In theory, the solution is very interesting. You have a 100% electric and zero emission vehicle, whose autonomy can be recovered in a few minutes, the time of a full. However, it is not perfect.
The disadvantages:
First of all, the big challenge for hydrogen is the distribution network. Have you passed many hydrogen service stations? Surely not, because everything is to be done in this regard, and development will be done by the major centers and through industry in certain countries. Air Liquide is already producing hydrogen at stations in the northern United States and other companies are also trying to break into the market.
The main detractors of hydrogen point out that more electricity is needed to produce it and that in many cases it will be produced from polluting sources. The success is of course to produce hydrogen from cleaner sources, including hydroelectricity, wind or solar. In fact, every night, Hydro-Quebec generates surpluses that are simply wasted. Why not use these surpluses to produce hydrogen and thus recover lost electricity? This is what a mini wind power plant, located in Japan, did that we had the chance to visit during our visit to the region.
Its efficiency rate in electrical production was 23%, but by supplying a mini-central unit with hydrogen, when the winds are not enough, its productivity rate was raised to more than 50%. The hydrogen produced in this way is sent to the various companies in the port, which use electric fuel cell forklifts, equipment that has to run constantly and that cannot be left plugged into the wall for hours. A great way to reduce the emissions of these companies.
Advantages:
One of the main advantages is the convenience. No need to wait hours for charging your vehicle, a full few minutes will give you complete electric autonomy, something that is appreciated when you are far from major centers or you do not have access to a charging device.
The autonomy is also higher since it is possible to store a higher energy load, an interesting element for those who do more mileage daily. Toyota presented the Fine-Comfort Ride concept at the Tokyo Motor Show, a vehicle with a range of 1,000 km, nothing less. No question of leaving aside the 100% electric at Toyota. The fuel cell will be complementary to conventional EVs and will above all allow electrifying models that would be difficult to do otherwise. People are no longer buying cars and the trend is now global. In North America, 64% of vehicles sold in 2016 were SUVs and pickup trucks.
Due to their size and weight, they are more complicated to electrify from batteries. It sold over 125,000 Ford F-150s in the country last year and it is unthinkable to electrify such behemoths while retaining their appeal and above all, a competitive price. Their energy consumption is such that the weight of the batteries would be greater than their charging capacity. Given its practicality, the hydrogen fuel cell proves to be an excellent solution for electrifying larger vehicles that require a large amount of energy. The impact on reducing emissions will therefore be much greater than in the case of a small car.
