- Email: [email protected]
NREL, GM partner on R&D to cut cost of automotive fuel cells
NEWS ROAD VEHICLES Editorial office: Elsevier Ltd The Boulevard, Langford Lane Kidlington Oxford OX5 1GB United Kingdom Tel:+44 (0)1865 843239 Fax: +44 (0)1865 843971 Website: www.fuelcellsbulletin.com Publisher: David Hopwood Editor: Steve Barrett E-mail: [email protected] Production Support Manager: Lin Lucas E-mail: [email protected] Subscription Information An annual subscription to Fuel Cells Bulletin includes 12 issues and online access for up to 5 users. Prices: 1401 for all European countries & Iran US$1570 for all countries except Europe and Japan ¥186 100 for Japan (Prices valid until 31 December 2014) To subscribe send payment to the address above. Tel: +44 (0)1865 843687 or via www.fuelcellsbulletin.com Subscriptions run for 12 months, from the date payment is received. Permissions may be sought directly from Elsevier Global Rights Department, PO Box 800, Oxford OX5 1DX, UK; phone: +44 1865 843830, fax: +44 1865 853333, email: [email protected]. You may also contact Global Rights directly through Elsevier’s home page (www.elsevier.com), selecting first ‘Support & contact’, then ‘Copyright & permission’. In the USA, users may clear permissions and make payments through the Copyright Clearance Center, Inc., 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, USA; phone: +1 978 750 8400, fax: +1 978 750 4744, and in the UK through the Copyright Licensing Agency Rapid Clearance Service (CLARCS), 90 Tottenham Court Road, London W1P 0LP, UK; phone: +44 (0)20 7631 5555; fax: +44 (0)20 7631 5500. Other countries may have a local reprographic rights agency for payments. Derivative Works Subscribers may reproduce tables of contents or prepare lists of articles including abstracts for internal circulation within their institutions. Permission of the Publisher is required for resale or distribution outside the institution. Permission of the Publisher is required for all other derivative works, including compilations and translations. Electronic Storage or Usage Permission of the Publisher is required to store or use electronically any material contained in this journal, including any article or part of an article. Except as outlined above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written permission of the Publisher. Address permissions requests to: Elsevier Science Global Rights Department, at the mail, fax and email addresses noted above. Notice No responsibility is assumed by the Publisher for any injury and/ or damage to persons or property as a matter of products liability, negligence or otherwise, or from any use or operation of any methods, products, instructions or ideas contained in the material herein. Because of rapid advances in the medical sciences, in particular, independent verification of diagnoses and drug dosages should be made. Although all advertising material is expected to conform to ethical (medical) standards, inclusion in this publication does not constitute a guarantee or endorsement of the quality or value of such product or of the claims made of it by its manufacturer.
12977 Digitally Produced by Mayfield Press (Oxford) LImited
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Fuel Cells Bulletin
Eighth-generation fuel cell buses for SunLine in Palm Springs
S
unLine Transit Agency in Thousand Palms, California has taken delivery of two new fuel cell buses, both powered by an FCvelocity®HD6 fuel cell module manufactured by Canadian-based Ballard Power Systems. These new 8th-generation buses feature an evolution of the previously deployed American Fuel Cell Bus (AFCB) configuration, which was introduced with SunLine Transit in late 2011 [FCB, December 2011, p2]. The AFCB configuration utilises Ballard’s fuel cell module to provide primary power, in combination with BAE Systems’ HybriDrive® propulsion and power management systems deployed in an ElDorado National 40 ft (12 m) heavy-duty Axess transit bus. A report prepared last summer by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and Battelle Memorial Institute, published by the Federal Transit Administration, compared the performance of the initial American Fuel Cell Bus deployed with SunLine to a number of compressed natural gas (CNG) buses. The AFCB achieved an exceptional 85% availability, with downtime most often caused by general bus system issues of a ‘low tech’ nature, unrelated to the advanced technologies. In addition, the AFCB averaged 6.54 miles per kg of hydrogen during operation, equating to 7.39 miles per diesel gallon equivalent (DGE), which is 2.4 times greater fuel economy than the baseline CNG buses. Also, the maintenance cost per mile for the AFCB was 26% lower than for CNG buses; indeed, the maintenance cost per mile for the propulsion system alone was 50% lower than for the baseline CNG buses. These two new buses double the number of Ballard powered fuel cell buses at SunLine. In 2013 Ballard signed extended service agreements with SunLine that will support bus operation for up to 10 years, demonstrating the agency’s continued commitment to operating these buses. Ballard recently signed a deal with Calstart in California to deploy a fuel cell hybrid bus in 2015 at the University of California campus in Irvine, again working with BAE Systems and ElDorado National [FCB, June 2014, p2]. Ballard’s 150 kW power module features a control unit which interfaces with a system controller, making it a plug-and-play product
for any fuel cell or hybrid fuel cell bus platform. The module also offers significant advances in durability, power density, and fuel efficiency compared to earlier generation products. Ballard Power Systems, Burnaby, BC, Canada. Tel: +1 604 454 0900, www.ballard.com American Fuel Cell Bus Project: First Analysis Report (June 2013): www.fta.dot.gov/documents/FTA_Report_No._0047.pdf
NREL, GM partner on R&D to cut cost of automotive fuel cells
T
he US Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory is partnering with General Motors on a multi-year, multi-million dollar joint effort to accelerate the reduction of automotive fuel cell stack costs through fuel cell material and manufacturing research and development. NREL and GM will focus on critical nextgeneration fuel cell electric vehicle challenges, which include reducing platinum loading, achieving high power densities, understanding the effects of contaminants on fuel cell performance and durability, and accelerating manufacturing processes to achieve the benefits of increased economies of scale. ‘Collaborating with GM allows NREL the ability to leverage a knowledge and material base beyond what is publicly available, and ensure the most relevant research areas are being addressed as efficiently as possible,’ says Bryan Pivovar, group manager for electrochemical engineering & materials chemistry at NREL. The work will be done under a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) between NREL and GM, and includes staff collaboration and the exchange of equipment, knowledge, and materials. ‘The Department of Energy has developed significant capability in fuel cell R&D, both in people and equipment, within the national lab system,’ adds Charlie Freese, executive director of GM’s Fuel Cell Activities. ‘This arrangement provides the framework to efficiently apply the fundamental perspective and tools at NREL to address the real-world development challenges we are currently working to resolve.’ The effort will take advantage of NREL’s state-of-the-art Energy Systems Integration Facility (ESIF), which has more than 6500 sq ft (600 m2) of lab space dedicated to supporting integrated efforts in fuel cell material and
July 2014
NEWS / EDITORIAL manufacturing R&D, according to Bryan Hannegan, associate laboratory director for energy systems integration. Special features of the facility include hazardous material and gas handling capabilities, and the infrastructure required to support a wide range of appropriate test conditions including integrated electrical, thermal, and hydrogen systems. GM’s fleet of FCEVs recently passed the cumulative milestone of 3 million miles (4.8 million km) of real-world driving [FCB, June 2014, p2]. Last summer it announced a major collaboration with Honda to co-develop nextgeneration fuel cell and hydrogen storage systems for commercialisation by 2020 [FCB, July 2013, p2]. The two automakers are also working with other stakeholders to further advance hydrogen refueling infrastructure through initiatives such as H2USA [FCB, May 2013, p7]. General Motors: http://tinyurl.com/gm-emerging-tech NREL, Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Technologies Program: www.nrel.gov/hydrogen/about_fc_hydrogen.html
MOBILE APPLICATIONS
CTE completes DOD fuel cell materials handling pilot project
A
team led by the Atlanta, Georgiabased Center for Transportation and the Environment (CTE) has successfully completed a hydrogen fuel cell pilot programme at the Defense Depot San Joaquin (DDJC) in Tracy, California. The project team – consisting of Air Products, Plug Power, Proton OnSite, and Papé Material Handling – designed, installed, operated, maintained, and decommissioned an electrolytic hydrogen generation and dispensing station and a fleet of 20 fuel cell powered forklifts at DDJC. The DDJC project is the fourth in a series of pilot projects sponsored by the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA), at three DLA Distribution warehouses and a Department of the Army installation, focused on investing to create early market opportunities for hydrogen fuel cell technologies [FCB, June 2010, p4]. DLA’s Leo Plonsky thanked CTE and the team for a successful project at DDJC. ‘When considering both the hydrogen production and fuel cell aspects of the demonstrations, it was the most accomplished of our four pilot sites,’ he says. ‘[The CTE] team was on time, on performance, and under cost. Maintaining
July 2014
operational availability over 99% while delivering a $1 million-plus under-run (16%) on an R&D project is commendable.’ The two-year demonstration saw 8134 kg of hydrogen produced by the electrolyser, with 7322 kg dispensed over 9062 fueling events, providing the 20 fuel cell forklifts with 38 231 hours of operation. The forklifts and hydrogen station finished the project with impressive operational availabilities of 99% and 100%, respectively. The pilot programme aimed to increase knowledge and understanding of hydrogenpowered materials handling equipment (MHE) and the associated infrastructure [FCB, June 2013, p3]. In the 24-month demonstration period running from December 2011 through November 2013, through the collection and analysis of operations and maintenance data, the project team was able to advance the TRL (Technology Readiness Level) and MRL (Manufacturing Readiness Level) of the MHE fuel cell GenDrive® units – supplied by Plug Power – from TRL 7/MRL 6 to TRL 9/MRL 9. The understanding of hydrogen fuel cells gained during this pilot programme hopefully paves the way for future commercial readiness of the technology [see the forklift features in FCB, September and October 2010, and the Plug Power feature in December 2011]. Center for Transportation and the Environment, Atlanta, Georgia, USA. Tel: +1 678 244 4150, www.cte.tv DLA Hydrogen Fuel Cell Pilot Program: www.dlafuelcells.org Air Products, Hydrogen Energy: www.airproducts.com/h2energy Plug Power: www.plugpower.com Papé Material Handling: www.papemh.com Proton OnSite: www.protononsite.com
Ballard gains H2 Logic materials handling IP, Euro deal for M-Field
D
enmark-based H2 Logic has transferred all of its H2Drive® PEM fuel cell activities, including its materials handling intellectual property (IP) portfolio, to Dantherm Power, the Danish subsidiary of Canadian-based Ballard Power Systems. Dantherm Power will focus on commercialising fuel cells for materials handling vehicles in Europe in collaboration with M-Field Energy Corporation – a subsidiary of M-Field Energy Ltd in
EDITORIAL
H
ydrogen infrastructure continues to make encouraging progress, with expanding networks of hydrogen refueling stations as the pre-commercial launch of fuel cell electric vehicles genuinely looks to be under way [see page 5]. For starters, The Linde Group has inaugurated what it says is the world’s first small-series production facility for hydrogen fueling stations in Vienna, Austria [see page 1]. The company modernised and expanded its Vienna Application Centre specifically for this project – I was invited to the official opening, but unfortunately I was already booked for a vacation so had to miss out. We hope to have a feature article shortly on this facility and Linde’s hydrogen fueling technology. Linde isn’t just targeting the European market – it also announced a deal with Iwatani Corporation in Japan to deliver 28 hydrogen stations using Linde’s ionic compressors. In addition, Danish company H2 Logic and Air Liquide in France have made a joint investment in the hydrogen fueling company Copenhagen Hydrogen Network [see page 8]. This will see Air Liquide install four new hydrogen stations in Denmark by the end of this year. Denmark plans to add five more hydrogen stations during 2015, to ensure that at least half of the population will live within 15 km of a hydrogen station. And the US Department of Energy has announced $20 million for 10 new R&D projects at national labs, universities and companies that aim to advance a variety of technologies to economically produce and deliver hydrogen from diverse, domestic, and renewable resources to power fuel cells [see page 8]. We have reported recently on the various participants in the accelerating effort to build up California’s hydrogen fueling infrastructure, with significant financial support from the California Energy Commission [FCB, May 2014, p7 and June 2014, p6]. The Commission is investing nearly $47 million to facilitate the construction of 28 new publicly accessible hydrogen fueling stations – at 13 new locations in northern California, and 15 in southern California – as well as a mobile refueler, to boost the statewide public network. The feature article in this issue is the concluding part of Vicki McConnell’s detailed look at waste-to-energy (WtE) projects that get their hydrogen from waste materials (i.e. biohydrogen or bioH2). In Part 2 she focuses on companies such as AFC Energy, with its low-temperature alkaline fuel cell technology combined with plasma gasification of waste, and reports on how BMW Manufacturing Co in South Carolina plans to run its materials handling fleet – powered by fuel cells supplied by Plug Power – on hydrogen produced from landfill gas (LFG). Steve Barrett
Fuel Cells Bulletin
3
12977 Digitally Produced by Mayfield Press (Oxford) LImited
2
Fuel Cells Bulletin
Eighth-generation fuel cell buses for SunLine in Palm Springs
S
unLine Transit Agency in Thousand Palms, California has taken delivery of two new fuel cell buses, both powered by an FCvelocity®HD6 fuel cell module manufactured by Canadian-based Ballard Power Systems. These new 8th-generation buses feature an evolution of the previously deployed American Fuel Cell Bus (AFCB) configuration, which was introduced with SunLine Transit in late 2011 [FCB, December 2011, p2]. The AFCB configuration utilises Ballard’s fuel cell module to provide primary power, in combination with BAE Systems’ HybriDrive® propulsion and power management systems deployed in an ElDorado National 40 ft (12 m) heavy-duty Axess transit bus. A report prepared last summer by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and Battelle Memorial Institute, published by the Federal Transit Administration, compared the performance of the initial American Fuel Cell Bus deployed with SunLine to a number of compressed natural gas (CNG) buses. The AFCB achieved an exceptional 85% availability, with downtime most often caused by general bus system issues of a ‘low tech’ nature, unrelated to the advanced technologies. In addition, the AFCB averaged 6.54 miles per kg of hydrogen during operation, equating to 7.39 miles per diesel gallon equivalent (DGE), which is 2.4 times greater fuel economy than the baseline CNG buses. Also, the maintenance cost per mile for the AFCB was 26% lower than for CNG buses; indeed, the maintenance cost per mile for the propulsion system alone was 50% lower than for the baseline CNG buses. These two new buses double the number of Ballard powered fuel cell buses at SunLine. In 2013 Ballard signed extended service agreements with SunLine that will support bus operation for up to 10 years, demonstrating the agency’s continued commitment to operating these buses. Ballard recently signed a deal with Calstart in California to deploy a fuel cell hybrid bus in 2015 at the University of California campus in Irvine, again working with BAE Systems and ElDorado National [FCB, June 2014, p2]. Ballard’s 150 kW power module features a control unit which interfaces with a system controller, making it a plug-and-play product
for any fuel cell or hybrid fuel cell bus platform. The module also offers significant advances in durability, power density, and fuel efficiency compared to earlier generation products. Ballard Power Systems, Burnaby, BC, Canada. Tel: +1 604 454 0900, www.ballard.com American Fuel Cell Bus Project: First Analysis Report (June 2013): www.fta.dot.gov/documents/FTA_Report_No._0047.pdf
NREL, GM partner on R&D to cut cost of automotive fuel cells
T
he US Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory is partnering with General Motors on a multi-year, multi-million dollar joint effort to accelerate the reduction of automotive fuel cell stack costs through fuel cell material and manufacturing research and development. NREL and GM will focus on critical nextgeneration fuel cell electric vehicle challenges, which include reducing platinum loading, achieving high power densities, understanding the effects of contaminants on fuel cell performance and durability, and accelerating manufacturing processes to achieve the benefits of increased economies of scale. ‘Collaborating with GM allows NREL the ability to leverage a knowledge and material base beyond what is publicly available, and ensure the most relevant research areas are being addressed as efficiently as possible,’ says Bryan Pivovar, group manager for electrochemical engineering & materials chemistry at NREL. The work will be done under a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) between NREL and GM, and includes staff collaboration and the exchange of equipment, knowledge, and materials. ‘The Department of Energy has developed significant capability in fuel cell R&D, both in people and equipment, within the national lab system,’ adds Charlie Freese, executive director of GM’s Fuel Cell Activities. ‘This arrangement provides the framework to efficiently apply the fundamental perspective and tools at NREL to address the real-world development challenges we are currently working to resolve.’ The effort will take advantage of NREL’s state-of-the-art Energy Systems Integration Facility (ESIF), which has more than 6500 sq ft (600 m2) of lab space dedicated to supporting integrated efforts in fuel cell material and
July 2014
NEWS / EDITORIAL manufacturing R&D, according to Bryan Hannegan, associate laboratory director for energy systems integration. Special features of the facility include hazardous material and gas handling capabilities, and the infrastructure required to support a wide range of appropriate test conditions including integrated electrical, thermal, and hydrogen systems. GM’s fleet of FCEVs recently passed the cumulative milestone of 3 million miles (4.8 million km) of real-world driving [FCB, June 2014, p2]. Last summer it announced a major collaboration with Honda to co-develop nextgeneration fuel cell and hydrogen storage systems for commercialisation by 2020 [FCB, July 2013, p2]. The two automakers are also working with other stakeholders to further advance hydrogen refueling infrastructure through initiatives such as H2USA [FCB, May 2013, p7]. General Motors: http://tinyurl.com/gm-emerging-tech NREL, Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Technologies Program: www.nrel.gov/hydrogen/about_fc_hydrogen.html
MOBILE APPLICATIONS
CTE completes DOD fuel cell materials handling pilot project
A
team led by the Atlanta, Georgiabased Center for Transportation and the Environment (CTE) has successfully completed a hydrogen fuel cell pilot programme at the Defense Depot San Joaquin (DDJC) in Tracy, California. The project team – consisting of Air Products, Plug Power, Proton OnSite, and Papé Material Handling – designed, installed, operated, maintained, and decommissioned an electrolytic hydrogen generation and dispensing station and a fleet of 20 fuel cell powered forklifts at DDJC. The DDJC project is the fourth in a series of pilot projects sponsored by the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA), at three DLA Distribution warehouses and a Department of the Army installation, focused on investing to create early market opportunities for hydrogen fuel cell technologies [FCB, June 2010, p4]. DLA’s Leo Plonsky thanked CTE and the team for a successful project at DDJC. ‘When considering both the hydrogen production and fuel cell aspects of the demonstrations, it was the most accomplished of our four pilot sites,’ he says. ‘[The CTE] team was on time, on performance, and under cost. Maintaining
July 2014
operational availability over 99% while delivering a $1 million-plus under-run (16%) on an R&D project is commendable.’ The two-year demonstration saw 8134 kg of hydrogen produced by the electrolyser, with 7322 kg dispensed over 9062 fueling events, providing the 20 fuel cell forklifts with 38 231 hours of operation. The forklifts and hydrogen station finished the project with impressive operational availabilities of 99% and 100%, respectively. The pilot programme aimed to increase knowledge and understanding of hydrogenpowered materials handling equipment (MHE) and the associated infrastructure [FCB, June 2013, p3]. In the 24-month demonstration period running from December 2011 through November 2013, through the collection and analysis of operations and maintenance data, the project team was able to advance the TRL (Technology Readiness Level) and MRL (Manufacturing Readiness Level) of the MHE fuel cell GenDrive® units – supplied by Plug Power – from TRL 7/MRL 6 to TRL 9/MRL 9. The understanding of hydrogen fuel cells gained during this pilot programme hopefully paves the way for future commercial readiness of the technology [see the forklift features in FCB, September and October 2010, and the Plug Power feature in December 2011]. Center for Transportation and the Environment, Atlanta, Georgia, USA. Tel: +1 678 244 4150, www.cte.tv DLA Hydrogen Fuel Cell Pilot Program: www.dlafuelcells.org Air Products, Hydrogen Energy: www.airproducts.com/h2energy Plug Power: www.plugpower.com Papé Material Handling: www.papemh.com Proton OnSite: www.protononsite.com
Ballard gains H2 Logic materials handling IP, Euro deal for M-Field
D
enmark-based H2 Logic has transferred all of its H2Drive® PEM fuel cell activities, including its materials handling intellectual property (IP) portfolio, to Dantherm Power, the Danish subsidiary of Canadian-based Ballard Power Systems. Dantherm Power will focus on commercialising fuel cells for materials handling vehicles in Europe in collaboration with M-Field Energy Corporation – a subsidiary of M-Field Energy Ltd in
EDITORIAL
H
ydrogen infrastructure continues to make encouraging progress, with expanding networks of hydrogen refueling stations as the pre-commercial launch of fuel cell electric vehicles genuinely looks to be under way [see page 5]. For starters, The Linde Group has inaugurated what it says is the world’s first small-series production facility for hydrogen fueling stations in Vienna, Austria [see page 1]. The company modernised and expanded its Vienna Application Centre specifically for this project – I was invited to the official opening, but unfortunately I was already booked for a vacation so had to miss out. We hope to have a feature article shortly on this facility and Linde’s hydrogen fueling technology. Linde isn’t just targeting the European market – it also announced a deal with Iwatani Corporation in Japan to deliver 28 hydrogen stations using Linde’s ionic compressors. In addition, Danish company H2 Logic and Air Liquide in France have made a joint investment in the hydrogen fueling company Copenhagen Hydrogen Network [see page 8]. This will see Air Liquide install four new hydrogen stations in Denmark by the end of this year. Denmark plans to add five more hydrogen stations during 2015, to ensure that at least half of the population will live within 15 km of a hydrogen station. And the US Department of Energy has announced $20 million for 10 new R&D projects at national labs, universities and companies that aim to advance a variety of technologies to economically produce and deliver hydrogen from diverse, domestic, and renewable resources to power fuel cells [see page 8]. We have reported recently on the various participants in the accelerating effort to build up California’s hydrogen fueling infrastructure, with significant financial support from the California Energy Commission [FCB, May 2014, p7 and June 2014, p6]. The Commission is investing nearly $47 million to facilitate the construction of 28 new publicly accessible hydrogen fueling stations – at 13 new locations in northern California, and 15 in southern California – as well as a mobile refueler, to boost the statewide public network. The feature article in this issue is the concluding part of Vicki McConnell’s detailed look at waste-to-energy (WtE) projects that get their hydrogen from waste materials (i.e. biohydrogen or bioH2). In Part 2 she focuses on companies such as AFC Energy, with its low-temperature alkaline fuel cell technology combined with plasma gasification of waste, and reports on how BMW Manufacturing Co in South Carolina plans to run its materials handling fleet – powered by fuel cells supplied by Plug Power – on hydrogen produced from landfill gas (LFG). Steve Barrett
Fuel Cells Bulletin
3