A
fuel cell bus is a bus that uses a
hydrogenHydrogen is the chemical element with atomic number 1. It is represented by the symbol H. At standard temperature and pressure, hydrogen is a colorless, odorless, nonmetallic, tasteless, highly flammable diatomic gas with the molecular formula H
2...
fuel cellA fuel cell is an electrochemical cell that produces electricity from a replenishable fuel tank. The electricity is generated through the reaction, triggered in the presence of an electrolyte, between the fuel and an oxidant . The reactants flow into the cell, and the reaction products flow out of...
as its power source for electrically driven wheels, sometimes augmented in a hybrid fashion with batteries or a
supercapacitorElectric double-layer capacitors, also known as supercapacitors, electrochemical double layer capacitors , or ultracapacitors, are electrochemical capacitors that have an unusually high energy density when compared to common capacitors, typically on the order of thousands of times greater than a...
.
A few companies are conducting hydrogen fuel cell research and practical
trialsThis page contains information on some fuel cell bus trials.Perth, Western Australia, a Fuel Cell Bus Club member agreed to share information with the following two trials:* 1998-Chicago and Vancouver, there were two-year three-bus demonstration projects...
. These include:
- Daimler AG, with thirty-six experimental units powered by Ballard Power Systems
Ballard Power Systems , located in Burnaby, British Columbia -- a suburb of Vancouver -- is a company that designs, develops, and manufactures zero emission proton-exchange-membrane fuel cells. This company has made a bus that uses only hydrogen fuel cells. These fuel cells combine hydrogen and...
fuel cells completing a successful three-year trial, in eleven cities, in January 2007.
- Thor Industries
Thor Industries, Inc. is a manufacturer of recreation vehicles and mid-sized commercial buses.-History:Thor Industries, Inc., was founded on August 29, 1980, when Wade F. B. Thompson and Peter B. Orthwein acquired Airstream. The name "Thor" combined the first two letters of each entrepreneur's name...
(the largest maker of buses in the U.S.), based on UTC PowerUnited Technologies Corporation is an American multinational conglomerate based in Hartford, Connecticut. It researches, develops, and manufactures high-technology products in numerous areas, including aircraft engines, helicopters, heating and cooling, fuel cells, elevators and escalators, fire...
fuel cell technology
- Irisbus
Irisbus is a bus manufacturer which was formed through the merger of the bus and coach divisions of Fiat, Iveco and Renault in January 1999...
, based on UTC PowerUnited Technologies Corporation is an American multinational conglomerate based in Hartford, Connecticut. It researches, develops, and manufactures high-technology products in numerous areas, including aircraft engines, helicopters, heating and cooling, fuel cells, elevators and escalators, fire...
fuel cell technology
There are also fuel cell powered buses currently active or in production, such as a fleet of Thor buses with
UTC PowerUTX may refer to:* United Technologies Corporation, an American multinational conglomerate based in Hartford, Connecticut.* Universal Terminology eXchange, a set of formats for machine translation user dictionaries....
fuel cells in California, operated by SunLine Transit Agency.
The first
BrazilBrazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is a country in South America. It is the fifth largest country by geographical area, occupying nearly half of South America, the fifth most populous country, and the fourth most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Atlantic Ocean...
ian
hydrogenA hydrogen vehicle is a vehicle that uses hydrogen as its onboard fuel for motive power. The term may refer to a personal transportation vehicle, such as an automobile, or any other vehicle that uses hydrogen in a similar fashion, such as an aircraft...
fuel cellA fuel cell is an electrochemical cell that produces electricity from a replenishable fuel tank. The electricity is generated through the reaction, triggered in the presence of an electrolyte, between the fuel and an oxidant . The reactants flow into the cell, and the reaction products flow out of...
bus prototype will begin operation in
São PauloSão Paulo is the largest city in Brazil and the world's 7th largest metropolitan area. The city is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous Brazilian state. It is also the richest city in Brazil. The name of the city honors Saint Paul. São Paulo exerts strong regional influence in...
during the first semester of 2009.
A
fuel cell bus is a bus that uses a
hydrogenHydrogen is the chemical element with atomic number 1. It is represented by the symbol H. At standard temperature and pressure, hydrogen is a colorless, odorless, nonmetallic, tasteless, highly flammable diatomic gas with the molecular formula H
2...
fuel cellA fuel cell is an electrochemical cell that produces electricity from a replenishable fuel tank. The electricity is generated through the reaction, triggered in the presence of an electrolyte, between the fuel and an oxidant . The reactants flow into the cell, and the reaction products flow out of...
as its power source for electrically driven wheels, sometimes augmented in a hybrid fashion with batteries or a
supercapacitorElectric double-layer capacitors, also known as supercapacitors, electrochemical double layer capacitors , or ultracapacitors, are electrochemical capacitors that have an unusually high energy density when compared to common capacitors, typically on the order of thousands of times greater than a...
.
A few companies are conducting hydrogen fuel cell research and practical
trialsThis page contains information on some fuel cell bus trials.Perth, Western Australia, a Fuel Cell Bus Club member agreed to share information with the following two trials:* 1998-Chicago and Vancouver, there were two-year three-bus demonstration projects...
. These include:
- Daimler AG, with thirty-six experimental units powered by Ballard Power Systems
Ballard Power Systems , located in Burnaby, British Columbia -- a suburb of Vancouver -- is a company that designs, develops, and manufactures zero emission proton-exchange-membrane fuel cells. This company has made a bus that uses only hydrogen fuel cells. These fuel cells combine hydrogen and...
fuel cells completing a successful three-year trial, in eleven cities, in January 2007.
- Thor Industries
Thor Industries, Inc. is a manufacturer of recreation vehicles and mid-sized commercial buses.-History:Thor Industries, Inc., was founded on August 29, 1980, when Wade F. B. Thompson and Peter B. Orthwein acquired Airstream. The name "Thor" combined the first two letters of each entrepreneur's name...
(the largest maker of buses in the U.S.), based on UTC PowerUnited Technologies Corporation is an American multinational conglomerate based in Hartford, Connecticut. It researches, develops, and manufactures high-technology products in numerous areas, including aircraft engines, helicopters, heating and cooling, fuel cells, elevators and escalators, fire...
fuel cell technology
- Irisbus
Irisbus is a bus manufacturer which was formed through the merger of the bus and coach divisions of Fiat, Iveco and Renault in January 1999...
, based on UTC PowerUnited Technologies Corporation is an American multinational conglomerate based in Hartford, Connecticut. It researches, develops, and manufactures high-technology products in numerous areas, including aircraft engines, helicopters, heating and cooling, fuel cells, elevators and escalators, fire...
fuel cell technology
There are also fuel cell powered buses currently active or in production, such as a fleet of Thor buses with
UTC PowerUTX may refer to:* United Technologies Corporation, an American multinational conglomerate based in Hartford, Connecticut.* Universal Terminology eXchange, a set of formats for machine translation user dictionaries....
fuel cells in California, operated by SunLine Transit Agency.
The first
BrazilBrazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is a country in South America. It is the fifth largest country by geographical area, occupying nearly half of South America, the fifth most populous country, and the fourth most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Atlantic Ocean...
ian
hydrogenA hydrogen vehicle is a vehicle that uses hydrogen as its onboard fuel for motive power. The term may refer to a personal transportation vehicle, such as an automobile, or any other vehicle that uses hydrogen in a similar fashion, such as an aircraft...
fuel cellA fuel cell is an electrochemical cell that produces electricity from a replenishable fuel tank. The electricity is generated through the reaction, triggered in the presence of an electrolyte, between the fuel and an oxidant . The reactants flow into the cell, and the reaction products flow out of...
bus prototype will begin operation in
São PauloSão Paulo is the largest city in Brazil and the world's 7th largest metropolitan area. The city is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous Brazilian state. It is also the richest city in Brazil. The name of the city honors Saint Paul. São Paulo exerts strong regional influence in...
during the first semester of 2009. The hydrogen bus was manufactured in
Caxias do SulCaxias do Sul is a city in Rio Grande do Sul, Southern Brazil, situated in the state's mountainous Serra Gaúcha region.It was established by Italian immigrants on June 20 1890. Today it is the second largest city in the state of Rio Grande do Sul...
and the hydrogen fuel will be produced in
São Bernardo do CampoSão Bernardo do Campo is a municipality located in the Greater São Paulo, in the state of São Paulo in Brazil.-History:...
from water through
electrolysisIn chemistry and manufacturing, electrolysis is a method of using an electric current to drive an otherwise non-spontaneous chemical reaction. Electrolysis is commercially highly important as a stage in the separation of elements from naturally-occurring sources such as ores using an electrolytic...
. The program, called "
Ônibus Brasileiro a Hidrogênio" (Brazilian Hydrogen Autobus), includes three additional buses.
The
Fuel Cell Bus ClubThe Fuel Cell Bus Club comprises the participants of the projects CUTE, ECTOS and STEP. Their website title says "the first fuel cell bus fleet"....
is a global cooperative effort in trial fuel cell buses. Ford began leasing E-350 shuttle buses in late 2006.
External links