Right now, a passenger vehicle running on petrol emits 4.6 metric tons of carbon dioxide per year, with every gallon of gasoline burnt creating about 8887 grams of carbon dioxide. Diesel is even worse, experts claim that diesel cars emit particulates of soot and multiple oxides of nitrogen, both of which can cause severe lung problems. With this in place the only two potential contenders that remain are the EV and the hydrogen, the first with its unavoidable battery production problems, the second an unexplored realm of zero emissions. We are here to change that.

Hydrogen Power

This technology has been around since 1966, but never has it reached the scale of petrol vehicles, never was it considered to be the technology of cars. Now, things have changed, people are looking for alternatives and hydrogen power is an upcoming star.

It is an electrochemical device which transforms the chemical energy contained in hydrogen and oxygen into electrical energy. Heat, water, and electricity are produced by reacting hydrogen and oxygen in the presence of a catalyst.

The pure hydrogen enters the anode and gets oxidized to form H+ ions, air is taken in from the second inlet and oxygen enters the cathode and gets reduced. The oxygen then reacts with protons(H+ ions) and electrons to form water. Excess fuel is removed to be reused along with water which is the only product of this electrolysis. Also, all the unused gas in the air is emitted back through the second outlet.

Anode Reaction: H2 - 2e- = 2H+

Cathode Reaction: O2 + 4H+ + 4e- = 2H2O

Overall Reaction: 2H2 + O2 = 2H2O

Using this hydrogen power in cars is a completely different idea, it involves having three systems in place: the fuel cell(for electricity), hydrogen tanks(storage of fuel), and axles connected to an electric motor(for propulsion). These three systems in coordination with each other work together to make the car function. The pure hydrogen from the tanks is sent to the fuel cell which converts the chemical energy into electrical energy and allows the electric motor to rotate, this results in movement in the axles which causes the wheels to rotate.

Advantages of using hydrogen power

This unexplored realm seems too good to be true, but sometimes even reality can be mind-blowing. Zero emissions are the selling point of this technology, with global warming at an all-time high, people now are looking for more efficient environmentally friendly options. Due to this option having no moving parts, it remains the system with the lowest maintenance. Compared to internal combustion engines it has an efficiency of over 40% more, truly showing the importance of this technology. On top of all of this on one single tank(filling up in 3-5 mins) the car can run approximately double the distance of a fuel car.

Disadvantages of using hydrogen power

Even though this realm has the potential similar to combustion engines, being even better at some points, why did it not reach the scale of the combustion engine? The formation of the fuel cell requires large amounts of spending on rare metals that are used as a catalyst such as platinum which helps to accelerate the reactions occurring at both the anode and the cathode. Additionally, contrast to common belief pure hydrogen as a fuel is difficult to obtain and currently there is less infrastructure than required to scale the production. When inputted in cars, there are concerns about it taking up too much space and breaking down frequently. Furthermore, due to unavailability of fueling stations the technology is restricted from being used in multiple countries or even multiple states.

Hydrogen or Electric: Which path does the future take?

The debate till now was between combustion engines and hydrogen power but there is one wildcard still to be considered; EV cars.

EV cars make use of chemical energy stored in lithium-ion battery packs and convert them to electrical energy for movement. That’s why up till now this production seemed like the preferred scalable alternative to combustion engines. With every new opportunity comes a challenge, for this opportunity it was the scarcity of lithium-ion batteries. As time passed, production plants became bigger and more EV cars were produced, more emissions were made by production of lithium-ion batteries causing the same climate change problems that combustion engines did. Considering the difficulties in the production of hydrogen with its high cost of production, in the future if scaled to a large stage it may become easier but it will not be without its own challenges.

The bar chart above shows a general comparison of the annual sales trends between the Tesla Model 3 and the Toyota Mirai. As represented, the Tesla Model 3 significantly outsells the Toyota Mirai, reflecting the broader adoption of electric vehicles compared to hydrogen fuel cell vehicles.

Current Developments

As of today, there are three automobile developers who have successfully implemented hydrogen power into cars; Toyota, Honda, and Hyundai. Toyota sells the model Mirai, Hyundai sells the Nexo, while Honda is starting production of its own FCEV “Honda CR-V” and will start to sell it in 2025.

Conclusion

To sum it all up, the hydrogen fuel cell even though very efficient and with zero emissions has its own scalability problems, comparing it to the EV vehicles, this technology has a long way to go in the automobile industry. As fuel cells get more popular and when the public starts to accept this system as the new normal, then only will we see the start of hydrogen power.

Citations:

1. "How Hydrogen Fuel Cell Cars Work." BMW.com, www.bmw.com/en/innovation/how-hydrogen-fuel-cell-cars-work.html.

2. "Hydrogen vs. Electric Cars." Edmunds, www.edmunds.com/electric-car/articles/hydrogen-vs-electric-cars.html.

3. "Understanding How a Hydrogen Fuel Cell Works: A Comprehensive Guide." Lhyfe Heroes, www.lhyfe-heroes.com/about-hydrogen/understanding-how-a-hydrogen-fuel-cell-works-a-comprehensive-guide#:~:text=Anode%20Reaction%3A%20At%20the%20anode,%2B%204H%2B%20%2B%204e%2D%20→%202H2O.

4. "Fuel Cell." Energy Education, energyeducation.ca/encyclopedia/Fuel_cell.

5. "The Surprising History of Hydrogen Vehicles." FasTechUS, www.fastechus.com/blog/the-surprising-history-of-hydrogen-vehicles.

6. Amos, Jonathan. "The Race to Power Aircraft with Hydrogen." BBC News, www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-42666596.