Controversy: The reform of the DGT labels, for July 1
Electric: At the bottom of Europe in ecological mobility?
When this writer came to the world of journalism more than two decades ago, fuel cell cars were already considered the cars of the future.
There was even talk, on a recurring basis, of the year 2010 as the frontier that would see them born.
However, and according to the International Energy Agency, at the end of 2019 there were barely 12,000 vehicles in the world that used this propulsion system
.
And in Spain, they do not reach twenty and all linked to demonstration projects of companies or entities.
The issue may change radically, and rapidly, from the next few years.
The key lies in the public-private boost that green hydrogen will receive, named after being obtained from renewable energy sources and, therefore, with zero emissions in its production.
In a kind of virtuous circle, it is to be hoped that the promotion of this element will allow the development of a recharging infrastructure that will stimulate
, in turn, the offer of new models that allow technology to continue to be cheaper while also reducing generation costs. of hydrogen itself.
You could say that, it is now or never.
How a fuel cell works
How does a fuel cell vehicle work?
Also known as a fuel cell, the fuel cell is a kind of small energy factory, whether or not it is embedded in a vehicle.
In it, they combine into hydrogen from an attached tank with oxygen that is injected (and purified) from the atmosphere.
In the chemical reaction that occurs
, the electricity that moves the vehicle is produced.
And the only waste left is the HO2 generated.
That is, water that is expelled in the form of steam.
It is, therefore, a zero emission vehicle.
Compared to another that only uses electricity from the batteries, it recharges in just five minutes and offers autonomies of up to 700 km in a car.
And
compared to a diesel engine, there is no comparison: a kilo of hydrogen used in a battery is equivalent in energy to seven liters of diesel.
In the mid-1960s,
General Motors designed the GM Electrovan, a small van equipped with this technology that reached 240 kilometers of autonomy
but, for safety reasons, never left the company's test circuits.
The American giant continued to investigate and was in fact very prolific with various prototypes at the beginning of this century.
However, those who took over with force,
since the end of the 90s,
and have maintained that momentum to this day have been
Toyota, Hyundai and Honda.
They are the only manufacturers that offer cars developed specifically with this technology, although others such as Mercedes-Benz have made adaptations on combustion versions.
FEW MODELS FOR SALE
The current
Honda Clarity Fuell Cell is
not even marketed in Spain, although it is offered by leasing in the US.
For its part,
the Hyundai Nexo is an SUV
with hydrogen tanks that allow it to reach 666 kilometers.
In Spain, it can be purchased for 72,750 euros if it is financed with the brand.
The most modern is
the second-generation Toyota Mirai,
which can already be ordered in our country from 65,000 euros.
They are not, in any case, accessible vehicles for private customers since, right now, in Spain there is no hydrogeneration open to the public where to refuel.
The Hyundai Nexo has a range of almost 700 kilometers
In addition, it is also beginning to be present among commercial and industrial vehicles, where it makes more sense since achieving high autonomies only with batteries is a great overweight that reduces load capacity.
For this reason,
Renault offers a mixed solution in its vans, adding a small battery
that extends the purely electric range.
And Mercedes-Benz has already made it clear that its roadmap goes through electric trucks for urban delivery and medium distance, while it will resort to the fuel cell for long-distance ones.
Thus, in 2023 it will already be road testing the first prototypes of the GenH2, a truck with up to 1,000 kilometers of range
.
In the project it has partnered with Volvo.
Hyundai or Toyota also have trucks with this technology.
Mercedes-Benz GneH2 prototype with 1,000 kilometers of autonomy
The most abundant element on Earth, but ...
"I believe that one day water will be used as fuel, that the hydrogen and oxygen that form it, by themselves or together, will be an inexhaustible source of light and heat ...".
The phrase corresponds to
Jules Verne, it is in his novel La Isla Misteriosa, from 1875,
and highlights both the importance of hydrogen (H2) and green hydrogen in particular.
Because
hydrogen has always been there, it is the most abundant chemical element in the world, it
represents 75% of the mass, it does not pollute, it can be an almost inexhaustible source of energy and, in addition, it serves to store others such as electricity obtained from the sun or from the wind, unstable and seasonal.
However, it is also volatile and flammable and it is expensive to produce, transport and store it for massive use since it is not found in isolation, so it must be obtained from a chemical compound that includes it, for example water or natural gas.
Currently, through unsustainable processes.
In addition, it also has a density 13 times lower than air, which forces it to be stored at pressures of up to 700 bars as gas in passenger cars, and -253 degrees Celsius if it is liquid
.
Some drawbacks that have kept it ostracized for decades.
A marginal refueling network
With no fleets of vehicles to refuel and with costs close to a million euros per installation, the existing network of hydropower plants in the world is merely testimonial.
At the end of 2019 and according to the International Energy Agency (IEA), 470 stations of this type were counted worldwide (20% more than in 2018) with Japan leading, followed by Germany, the US and China.
In addition, those that already exist and those that are opening now, such as the one that Toyota Spain and its partners inaugurated earlier this year in Madrid, only supply fleet vehicles.
Nor is it a stimulus for the development of a network that 95% of the hydrogen consumed in Spain (500,000 tons per year) is absorbed directly by refineries (70%) and chemical product manufacturers (25%).
Although initiatives such as the plan presented in our country by
Naturgy are
already beginning to be developed
, which wants to install 38 hydrogenerators (20 of them with on-site production) by 2025, and reach 120 in a second phase.
In fact, this project would practically cover the forecasts of the Spanish Government's plan, which aims to open 150 facilities of this type by the end of the decade.
Green hydrogen, the great hope
The key that will allow breaking ties with the past is green hydrogen, considered a fundamental vector to achieve decarbonization between now and 2050. Its implementation requires public-private collaboration and it is not an exclusive race, since it will coexist with other technologies clean and
the EU foresees that it will not cover more than 14% of energy demand in 2050. In any case, Brussels estimates that it will be necessary to invest a minimum of 470,000 million euros until 2050 to boost its use.
It would begin with the industries or transport of impossible or difficult electrification, such as air or maritime, but also in the railway, or heavy by road.
At the same time, it should be gaining in competitiveness, so it is recommended that the production plants be located as close as possible to where it is consumed, be it a hydropower plant -of which 400 are to be created- or a company.
Only in the last phase, starting in 2030, would its massive landing in the economy take place.
Meanwhile,
the Spanish Government expects to move a public-private investment of 8,900 million until 2030 and that the consumption of hydrogen in the industry rises to 25% that year.
It also wants 200 buses and 7,500 light and heavy fuel cell vehicles to be in circulation on that date.
ZERO EMISSIONS FROM THE WELL TO THE WHEEL
99% of the hydrogen consumed in our country is the so-called 'gray' obtained from natural gas, methane or LPG.
It is the cheapest and dirtiest process, hence its name.
It is also the same as that used for 'blue' hydrogen,
but here additional techniques are introduced that remove up to 95% of the CO2 generated in the process.
Above all of them,
the 'green', obtained from electricity from renewable sources
, will make the vehicle that uses it zero emissions 'from the well to the wheel'.
To produce it, electrolysis is used, the reverse process that occurs in the battery: electricity is applied to the water, breaking its molecules to release the H2.
The problem is that if today producing a kilo of 'green' hydrogen costs up to five euros according to the IEA, for the 1.5 of the gray, these amounts will be equated
as costs fall between now and 2030: up to 30% renewable energies and 50% electrizers, according to Iberdrola.
This, together with the economies of scale, could make the cost between generating one type of hydrogen and the other equal at the end of this decade, predicts the consultancy IHS Market.
In addition, the commitment to this clean hydrogen has other positive effects;
It will reduce our energy dependence on abroad and,
given Spain's potential for renewable energy, could put us in a leading position in the European hydrogen economy.
According to the criteria of The Trust Project
Know more
Engine
Motor industry
Used car sales drop 26.4% in January
Engine Created the first Spanish 'Airbus' for batteries
MotorEspaña is positioned in the race to make cyber-insurance cars
See links of interest
Work calendar
Borussia Dortmund - Sevilla, live
Juventus - FC Porto
Atlético - Athletic, live
PSG - Barcelona, live
Liverpool - RB Leipzig