by What are Fuel Cell Vehicles?
hydrogen fuel cell vehicle (FCVs) work very differently than traditional gasoline or diesel powered vehicles. Instead of an internal combustion engine, FCVs use hydrogen fuel cells that produce electricity to power electric motors. Hydrogen is stored on board the vehicle, usually in high-pressure tanks, and fed into the fuel cells. Within the fuel cells, hydrogen atoms split into negatively charged electrons and positively charged protons through a process called electrolysis. The protons and electrons are used to produce electricity and water is the only byproduct expelled from the vehicle, making FCVs ultra-clean and environmentally friendly.
Benefits of Fuel Cell Technology
FCVs have some significant advantages over conventional gasoline or diesel vehicles:
Lower Emissions: FCVs emit no tailpipe emissions since they only expel water vapor. This makes them a zero-emission option and great for improving local air quality in cities.
Long Range: FCVs can usually travel over 300 miles on a single fill up of hydrogen, similar to or better than the range of gasoline vehicles. Refueling also only takes a few minutes like gasoline.
Quiet Ride: Since FCVs have electric motors instead of noisy combustion engines, they operate very quietly for a smooth driving experience.
Domestic Fuel Source: Most of the hydrogen used in early FCVs was produced locally from natural gas, so fuel would not have to be imported. Long-term, hydrogen can be produced domestically from diverse resources.
Growing Infrastructure: More hydrogen fueling stations are steadily being built to support the rollout of FCVs. Major automakers are working closely with energy companies on infrastructure development.
Challenges Facing Widespread Adoption
While FCV technology holds promise, several challenges still need to be overcome for it to gain mass-market acceptance:
High Vehicle Cost: Fuel cell stacks and hydrogen storage systems are still very expensive to produce at scale. This makes the upfront cost of purchasing an FCV high compared to gasoline cars.
Limited Refueling Stations: Even with new station builds, the hydrogen refueling network remains sparse compared to over 150,000 gasoline stations. Range anxiety is still a concern until infrastructure is more developed.
Difficulty Manufacturing Hydrogen: Most hydrogen currently comes from reforming natural gas, but renewable production methods still need improvements to become cost-effective at a large scale.
Technology Improvement Needs: Automakers are still refining areas like increasing durability and reducing platinum use in fuel cells to help lower costs over time.
Addressing the Drawbacks
Considerable effort is underway globally to address the challenges holding back FCV market growth. On the cost front, automakers expect production of key components to decrease significantly with mass manufacturing thanks to economies of scale. New fuel cell designs also aim to improve durability and reduce use of expensive materials.
Collaborations between government and private companies are expanding the fueling infrastructure through joint investment projects. Regions like California, Japan, South Korea and parts of Europe are leading the infrastructure buildout. With a critical mass of fueling stations and FCVs on the road, the chicken-and-egg problem can potentially be solved.
Researchers worldwide are also investigating various renewable hydrogen production methods such as electrolysis using wind or solar power. If these technologies advance to large commercial scales, they could enable a carbon-free, hydrogen-based economy. Major oil companies like Shell are joining the renewable hydrogen push by investing in related startups.
Future Outlook
While hydrogen fuel cell vehicle face an uphill battle, most experts forecast the market gaining meaningful traction in the 2030s. Regulatory policies promoting emission reductions are viewed as a big driver for future adoption. Automakers expect FCV model offerings and production volumes to ramp up substantially over the next decade, concentrating first in global markets with strong policy support like China, Japan, South Korea and parts of Europe. By the late 2020s and 2030s, forecasts anticipate FCV costs nearing parity with conventional vehicles as manufacturing reaches mass scale. This would begin to open the market more broadly if refueling infrastructure is sufficiently developed. With continued effort, hydrogen fuel cells could emerge as one of the primary technologies helping to decarbonize transportation in the second half of this century.
*Note:
- Source: Coherent Market Insights, Public sources, Desk research
- We have leveraged AI tools to mine information and compile it
