A hydrogen vehicle is a vehicle that uses hydrogen to move. Hydrogen vehicles include some road vehicles, rail vehicles, space rockets, forklifts, ships and aircraft. Motive power is generated by converting the chemical energy of hydrogen to mechanical energy, either by reacting hydrogen with oxygen in a fuel cell to power electric motors or, less commonly, by hydrogen internal combustion.
Ballard Power Systems Inc. is a developer and manufacturer of proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell products for markets such as heavy-duty motive, portable power, material handling as well as engineering services. Ballard has designed and shipped over 400 MW of fuel cell products to date.
An electric vehicle (EV) is a vehicle that uses one or more electric motors for propulsion. The vehicle can be powered by a collector system, with electricity from extravehicular sources, or can be powered autonomously by a battery or by converting fuel to electricity using a generator or fuel cells. EVs include road and rail vehicles, electric boats and underwater vessels, electric aircraft and electric spacecraft.
The hydrogen economy is an umbrella term for the roles hydrogen can play alongside low-carbon electricity to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases. The aim is to reduce emissions where cheaper and more energy-efficient clean solutions are not available. In this context, hydrogen economy encompasses the production of hydrogen and the use of hydrogen in ways that contribute to phasing-out fossil fuels and limiting climate change.
A fuel cell vehicle (FCV) or fuel cell electric vehicle (FCEV) is an electric vehicle that uses a fuel cell, sometimes in combination with a small battery or supercapacitor, to power its onboard electric motor. Fuel cells in vehicles generate electricity generally using oxygen from the air and compressed hydrogen. Most fuel cell vehicles are classified as zero-emissions vehicles. As compared with internal combustion vehicles, hydrogen vehicles centralize pollutants at the site of the hydrogen production, where hydrogen is typically derived from reformed natural gas. Transporting and storing hydrogen may also create pollutants. Fuel cells have been used in various kinds of vehicles including forklifts, especially in indoor applications where their clean emissions are important to air quality, and in space applications. Fuel cells are being developed and tested in trucks, buses, boats, ships, motorcycles and bicycles, among other kinds of vehicles.
Hydrogen technologies are technologies that relate to the production and use of hydrogen as a part hydrogen economy. Hydrogen technologies are applicable for many uses.
A hydrogen-powered aircraft is an aeroplane that uses hydrogen fuel as a power source. Hydrogen can either be burned in a jet engine or another kind of internal combustion engine, or can be used to power a fuel cell to generate electricity to power an electric propulsor. It cannot be stored in a traditional wet wing, and hydrogen tanks have to be housed in the fuselage or be supported by the wing.
An alternative fuel vehicle is a motor vehicle that runs on alternative fuel rather than traditional petroleum fuels. The term also refers to any technology powering an engine that does not solely involve petroleum. Because of a combination of factors, such as environmental and health concerns including climate change and air pollution, high oil-prices and the potential for peak oil, development of cleaner alternative fuels and advanced power systems for vehicles has become a high priority for many governments and vehicle manufacturers around the world.
The Toyota FCHV is a hybrid hydrogen fuel cell vehicle development programme of the Toyota Motor Corporation, which was leased to a limited number of drivers in the United States and Japan beginning in 2002. The Toyota FCHV and Honda FCX, which began leasing on 2 December 2002, became the world's first government-certified commercial hydrogen fuel cell vehicles. Its first commercial fuel cell vehicle was developed from the FCHV-4, which was adapted from the Toyota Highlander body. "FCHV" stands for "Fuel Cell Hybrid Vehicle". A number of prototypes have been produced, up to the latest FCHV-adv ("advanced").
A hydrogen ship is a hydrogen fueled ship, using an electric motor that gets its electricity from a fuel cell, or hydrogen fuel in an internal combustion engine.
A fuel cell bus is a bus that uses a hydrogen fuel cell as its power source for electrically driven wheels, sometimes augmented in a hybrid fashion with batteries or a supercapacitor. The only emission from the bus is water. Several cities around the world have trialled and tested fuel cell buses, with over 5,600 buses in use worldwide, the majority of which are in China.
A hydrogen internal combustion engine vehicle (HICEV) is a type of hydrogen vehicle using an internal combustion engine. Hydrogen internal combustion engine vehicles are different from hydrogen fuel cell vehicles. Instead, the hydrogen internal combustion engine is simply a modified version of the traditional gasoline-powered internal combustion engine. The absence of carbon means that no CO2 is produced, which eliminates the main greenhouse gas emission of a conventional petroleum engine.
There are 3,826 hybrid buses, 1,397 battery electric buses, and 20 hydrogen fuel cell buses operating in London, as of March 2024, out of a total bus fleet of 8,776 – this is around 60% of the bus fleet.
ITM Power plc is an energy storage and clean fuel company founded in the UK in 2001. It designs, manufactures, and integrates electrolysers based on proton exchange membrane (PEM) technology to produce green hydrogen using renewable electricity and tap water. Hydrogen produced via electrolysis is used for mobility, Power-to-X, and industry.
REV Group, Inc. is an American manufacturer of ambulances, buses, commercial vehicle, firefighting vehicles, recreational vehicles and other specialty vehicles, as well as aftermarket parts and services. It provides vehicles and services for public fire departments and emergency services, as well as commercial infrastructure and leisure vehicles for consumers.
The Toyota Mirai is a mid-size hydrogen fuel cell vehicle (FCV) manufactured by Toyota, and is the first FCV to be mass-produced and sold commercially. The Mirai was unveiled at the November 2014 Los Angeles Auto Show. As of November 2022, global sales totaled 21,475 units; the top-selling markets were the U.S. with 11,368 units, Japan with 7,435 and the rest of the world with 2,622.
Nikola Corporation is an American manufacturer of heavy-duty commercial battery-electric vehicles, fuel-cell electric vehicles, and energy solutions. It presented several concept vehicles from 2016 to 2020, the first of which was a natural gas fueled turbine-electric semi truck. The company went public on June 4, 2020. In February 2022, the company projected deliveries of between 300 and 500 of its first battery-electric semitrucks — known as the Nikola Tre — to customers. The company delivered its first two battery-electric trucks in December 2021. Like Tesla, Inc., the company is named in honor of Nikola Tesla, but these are not related to the inventor. Nikola Corporation is based in Phoenix, Arizona.
ZeroAvia is a British/American hydrogen-electric aircraft developer. The company was founded in 2017 by Valery Miftakhov, who currently serves as the company CEO. ZeroAvia is developing hydrogen-fueled powertrain technology aiming to compete with conventional engines in propeller aircraft, with an aim of zero-emission and lower noise. ZeroAvia expects to sell products by 2023 and demonstrate flights up to 500 miles (800 km) in aircraft of up to 20 seats. According to the company, by 2026, ZeroAvia intends to fly an aircraft over 500 miles range in aircraft with up to 80 seats.
