An increasing amount of alternatives to fossil fuels are being invented. Hydrogen is one of those and it’s not all that new actually. It’s been there since the earth existed and it is one of the most common elements. As an energy carries, hydrogen is two to three times more efficient than conventional fuels, but why don’t all cars drive on hydrogen then? ALD Automotive found out why.
Solar energy, wood chips, biofuel and even seaweed. These are a few alternative fuels that are currently being experimented with. The technology behind driving on hydrogen is much older than these fuels. There are also manufacturers like Toyota and Hyundai that have been developing hydrogen cars for some time already. However, the concept is not yet really breaking through. Why is that actually?
Green hydrogen
Because water is the only by-product, hydrogen cars are completely carbon neutral. It could hardly be more sustainable you would think. This only applies, however, if it is made using water and sustainably generated energy. Unfortunately, the latter is not yet sufficiently available. That is why it still takes a lot of time to produce ‘green’ hydrogen as fuel. And once it has been produced, a lot of storage space is needed for hydrogen. That’s why hydrogen refuelling stations are not yet springing up everywhere.
Driving on hydrogen does save a lot of time however. Refuelling with hydrogen is just as quick as refuelling petrol. And the range of a hydrogen car is also significantly greater than that of an electric car. The logistics sector in particular often opts, therefore, to drive on this type of fuel.
In practice
When we weigh up driving on hydrogen and electric driving against each other, hydrogen has many advantages, but it still poses some problems in practice. Especially when it is applied on a large scale.
The developments with regard to hydrogen are constantly evolving of course. And a lot of work is being done on the network of hydrogen refuelling stations. That is very much necessary, because without the refuelling stations, hydrogen cars cannot drive at all. This year alone, the number of stations is expected to be expanded from 3 to 20. There should be 50 of them by 2025. That is why we are keeping a close eye on these developments.
We are keeping an eye on innovations in this field, of course, such as driving on wood residues, a Dutch invention that is being tested in Sweden.