There are many advantages to the Fuel Cell Electric Vehicle (FCEV) over the plug in Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV). The first point to make is that they are both Electric Vehicles, the key difference is the way that the energy is transferred to the vehicle.
BEVs store the energy in a battery; increased range requires more batteries, which makes the vehicles heavier and less efficient. Increasing the range of a FCEV is achieved by making the hydrogen tank bigger which has only a small effect on the weight. The result is that hydrogen vehicles have a much longer range and can also be easily configured for heavy duty vehicles such as buses and haulage vehicles.
Refuelling time is also a key advantage of hydrogen electric drivetrains. Most FCEV can be refuelled in 3min under the SAE J2601 refuelling protocol. This allows for fuel forecourt dispensing since the refuelling takes a similar time to petrol and diesel. Even with fast chargers, residing on forecourts for 30 mins is impractical and so charging is likely to be at home, with limited range.
ITM Power Plc designs and manufactures integrated hydrogen energy solutions for energy storage and clean fuel production. The Company has a range of product platforms based on Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) technology. The Company’s product, HGas, is designed for Power-to-Gas applications.
