Germany moves closer to hydrogen vehicle growth

The goal of having hydrogen as an alternative fuel widely available in Germany came a little closer recently when two new hydrogen fuel facilities were opened at filling stations in Frankfurt and Weisbaden, writes Brian Byrne.

In a scheme to which the German government has contributed €1.6m, this brings to 30 the number of such facilities in Germany. It is planned have a network of 400 such stations by 2023.

The programme is being implemented in a joint venture by H2 Mobility Deutschland and its partners Air Liquide, Daimler, Linde and Shell.

The hydrogen is used in fuel-cell powered cars, which emit no greenhouse gases and have electric motors using electricity produced by the FC system.

Lab breakthrough in biofuels

Amid some level of controversy that producing biofuels pushes up the cost of food because farmers switch to the more lucrative related cash crops, scientists have developed a system where micro-organisms produce sugar using photosynthesis—converting the energy from the sun, writes Brian Byrne.

The pilot systems developed by New Jersey-based Proterro Inc have shown that sugar can be produced at a third of the current cost of production, and at 10 times more per acre than the current most efficient manner, sugarcane. The researchers expect to be able to triple this rate.

Scaled up, the sugar would be produced inside closed transparenr containers, and the cyanobacteria grown on a fabric that requires a trickle of water to sustain them.

Breakthrough brings hydrogen closer

Scientists at Penn State University in the US may have brought the 'holy grail' of a hydrogen-based fuel system a bit closer, writes Brian Byrne.

While hydrogen is an almost perfect product for use in a variety of power systems from fuel cells to the familiar internal combustion engine, its energy-hungry production makes it costly and ungreen.

But the Penn State scientists have succeeded at laboratory level in producing the stuff at little energy costs, using bacteria in waste water and a reverse desalination process to provide the small amount of energy required to kick the system off.

The microbial electrolysis cells can break down matter in wastewater to release hydrogen, but they need a little electricity to jolt them into action. The reverse desalination system produces that energy at virtually no cost.

If the system can be scaled up to commercial production, it's a very cost effective way of producing a real replacement for fossil fuels.

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Buyers would go for hybrids

Three out of five new car buyers in Europe would consider a hybrid purchase, according to a survey carried out for motor trade magazine Automotive News Europe.

The survey -- in Germany, Britain and France -- also suggested that buyers were prepared to pay extra for the technology.

A parallel survey of dealers indicated that they believed they would lose business if the brands they sold didn't include hybrid powertrains.

But the exercise also revealed that both consumers and dealers wanted more information about alternatives than was currently being supplied. BB.