NEWS
Neah presently offers four sizes of reformers
for hydrogen fuel cells in 5, 10, 50 and 100 W
configurations for demonstration purposes.
The reformer system is designed to provide
sufficient hydrogen to a fuel cell system. The
fuel tank is adjustable to the energy or runtime
required, and other power ranges and form
factors can be made available in customised
configurations.
Neah Power is developing power solutions
for the military, transportation, and portable
electronics sectors. The company’s long-
lasting, efficient, and safe solutions include the
PowerChip and the BuzzBar family of products.
Neah Power Systems, Bothell, Washington, USA.
Tel: +1 425 424 3324, www.neahpower.com or
www.buzzbarsuite.com
FUELING
Davis study suggests
that hydrogen FCEV
rollout may succeed
A convergence of factors is propelling
the market rollout of hydrogen fuel
cell electric vehicles, according to a new
study from the Institute of Transportation
Studies at the University of California,
Davis. The clustering of hydrogen fuel
infrastructure in urban or regional
networks is a key to success, limiting
initial costs and enabling an early market
for the technology before committing to
full deployment across the US.
The researchers behind the study, The
Hydrogen Transition, probed the various
factors combining to increase the likelihood
of successful hydrogen car commercialisation.
These include new thinking by government and
industry on strategies for developing fuel station
infrastructure, falling costs for FCEV and
hydrogen station components, a new array of
sporty hydrogen cars about to come to market
from major automakers, ample low-cost natural
gas for making hydrogen, and strengthening US
interest in climate change solutions.
Having sufficient hydrogen fueling locations
has been a major challenge. Recently, however,
regional public-private partnerships are
emerging to develop smart, comprehensive
build-out strategies in different locations
around the world. These new infrastructure
paradigms enable more efficient fueling
networks, saving millions of dollars compared
to earlier designs, and hold the promise
of providing hydrogen conveniently and
affordably.
8
Fuel Cells Bulletin
ITS-Davis researchers calculated that a
targeted regional investment of $100–200
million in support of 100 stations for about
50 000 FCEVs would be enough to make
hydrogen cost-competitive with gasoline on a
cost-per-mile basis. This level of investment
is poised to happen in at least three places:
California [FCB, May 2014, p7], Germany
[FCB, May 2014, p9], and Japan [FCB, July
2014, p9].
The UC Davis report identifies important
factors that are bringing hydrogen and fuel cell
technologies to the verge of commercialisation,
including:
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goals.
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coupled with public-private partnerships for
FCEV rollout.
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gen and fuel cells.
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response to climate change concerns.
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electricity.
‘Hydrogen faces a range of challenges,
from economic to societal, before it can be
implemented as a large-scale transportation
fuel,’ says lead author Joan Ogden, professor
of environmental science and policy, and
director of Sustainable Transportation Energy
Pathways (NextSTEPS). ‘The question isn’t
whether fuel cell vehicles are technically
ready: they are. But how do you build
confidence in hydrogen’s future for investors,
fuel suppliers, automakers, and, of course, for
consumers?’
Contact: Professor Joan Ogden, Institute of
Transportation Studies, University of California – Davis.
Tel: +1 530 902 7353, Email: jmogden@ucdavis.edu,
Web: www.its.ucdavis.edu
The Hydrogen Transition (PDF):
http://tinyurl.com/h2-transition-paper
The Hydrogen Transition, executive summary (PDF):
http://tinyurl.com/h2-transition-summary
FirstElement Fuel uses
Black & Veatch for
California H2 network
F irstElement Fuel Inc, a California-
based company that aims to
provide fuel cell electric vehicle drivers
with retail hydrogen fuel, has finalised
an agreement with Black & Veatch
to serve as FirstElement’s primary
engineering and construction provider.
The deal follows the California Energy
Commission giving final approval for
a $27.6 million grant to FirstElement
to help develop the first phase of a
California hydrogen network that will
support FCEVs in the state.
The California Energy Commission grant
to FirstElement for 19 hydrogen stations
will more than triple the current number of
stations in the state [FCB, May 2014, p7 and
June 2014, p6]. In addition to the California
grants, FirstElement is receiving financial
support from Toyota, which will begin selling
FCEVs to customers next year. The stations,
scheduled to be completed by autumn 2015,
represent the initial phase of FirstElement’s
plan to construct a state-wide hydrogen
network as FCEVs start to reach car dealer
showrooms in California.
Black & Veatch recently designed and built a
proprietary network of ‘supercharger’ charging
stations for Tesla electric vehicles across North
America, with 100 stations sufficient to allow a
Tesla car owner to drive from Seattle to Miami,
or from Los Angeles to New York.
The California hydrogen network is planned
as an add-on to existing gasoline stations to
ensure easy, retail access for FCEV customers. A
recent study by researchers at Sandia National
Laboratories concludes that a number of
existing regular filling stations in the state
can also safely store and dispense hydrogen,
suggesting a broader network of hydrogen
fueling stations may be within reach [FCB,
August 2014, p7, and see the above item].
FirstElement Fuel Inc, Newport Beach, California, USA.
Tel: +1 949 205 5553, www.firstelementfuel.com
Black & Veatch: www.bv.com
Aberdeen plans extra
hydrogen station, plus
fuel cell vans and cars
A
second hydrogen refueling and
storage station could be built in
Aberdeen, Scotland according to a
local media report in The Press and
Journal. It would become part of
the Aberdeen Hydrogen Project (H2
Aberdeen), which aims to establish a
supply chain based around hydrogen
product and service development
in the city. The city council is also
considering the purchase of additional
hydrogen vehicles, in the form of
Renault vans with fuel cell range-
extenders as well as Hyundai ix35
Fuel Cell cars.
September 2014

Aberdeen’s first hydrogen refueling
station is currently nearing completion in
Kittybrewster, ready for the launch of the
city’s fuel cell bus fleet. The station, built
by BOC, features electrolysers supplied by
Hydrogenics [FCB, February 2014, p9]. The
fleet will be Europe’s largest, with 10 fuel cell
buses in use in the city by the end of the year
[FCB, April 2014, p2]. The bus project is
also part of the HyTrEc (Hydrogen Transport
Economy) project, working with EU partners
in the North Sea region.
The city council, which will own the second
hydrogen station and be able to use it to refuel
buses, cars and other vehicles, is now looking
for a contractor to begin work on the facility.
The station should be able to refuel two buses
back-to-back within 30 minutes.
Earlier this year, Aberdeen City Council
received a £758 000 (US$1.24 million) grant
from the European Regional Development
Fund for the demonstration of hydrogen
storage. The implementation of the second
station would create jobs both within the city
and the ‘wider hydrogen economy’, according
to Labour councillor Barney Crockett. Many
of the engineering skills already in place
in northeastern Scotland, through its well
established oil & gas industry, can easily
transfer to work in hydrogen storage.
In other news, Aberdeen City Council has
been awarded additional external funding
from Transport Scotland to deploy a number
of hydrogen vehicles in support of the City
Regions Hydrogen Strategy Framework. The
council is therefore proposing to purchase up
to 10 hydrogen plug-in (range-extender) fuel
cell Renault HyKangoo vans for use within the
council fleet, as well as one or two Hyundai
ix35 Fuel Cell cars on four-year leases. The
council is already operating two hydrogen
internal combustion engine (HICE) hybrid
Transit vans supplied by Revolve Technologies
as demonstration vehicles.
The Renault HyKangoo vans are equipped
with a hydrogen PEM fuel cell range-extender
developed by French company Symbio FCell,
which doubles the driving range compared
to a standard battery electric vehicle [FCB,
December 2013, p1]. The Hyundai ix35 cars
would be co-funded by the CoWheels car club,
which would deploy them to act as highly
visible, publicly accessible hydrogen vehicles.
H2 Aberdeen: http://tinyurl.com/h2-aberdeen
HyTrEc project: www.hytrec.eu
Symbio FCell, Kangoo vans:
www.symbiofcell.com/sol-re.html
Hyundai, Fuel Cell Electric Vehicles:
http://tinyurl.com/hyundai-fcevs
September 2014
Bohlen & Doyen adds
mobile H2 to Clean
Energy Partnership
I n Germany, service station
technology company Bohlen & Doyen
is contributing a mobile hydrogen
fueling station to the Clean Energy
Partnership. The station is scheduled
to go live in 2015, as part of Europe’s
largest hydrogen project.
Since it was established in 2002, the
Clean Energy Partnership (CEP) has focused
on clean mobility utilising hydrogen. This
includes fuel cell electric vehicles, hydrogen
production from renewable sources, and safe
and reliable refueling technology. With the
imminent launch of series-production vehicles
in Europe and elsewhere, a main focus of the
CEP is now on developing a comprehensive
fueling station infrastructure. By the end of
2015, there will be an initial 50 stations in
major German cities and on main connecting
roads, and some 400 stations by 2023 [FCB,
October 2013, p6].
As part of the project, Bohlen & Doyen will
build a movable hydrogen refueling station as
a backup solution. ‘The extra service station
is to be used in particular to maintain a basic
supply for fuel cell vehicles in infrastructure-
poor regions,’ explains Marcus Reher, head
of the service station technology department
at Bohlen & Doyen. For example, hydrogen
customers would no longer have to go without
refueling when a service station is undergoing
maintenance, but could instead use the backup
service station.
Bohlen & Doyen – part of the SAG Group,
a leading German energy infrastructure
firm – has extensive experience in service
station technology. As a leading constructor
of natural gas, LPG and liquefied natural gas
(LNG) stations, Bohlen & Doyen offers all
services related to gas filling stations, including
planning, design, dimensioning, construction
and installation of high-speed refueling
facilities.
The Clean Energy Partnership is an
alliance of 19 leading companies with the
goal of establishing hydrogen as the ‘fuel of
the future’ [see the CEP feature in FCB, June
2011]. The ground-breaking project includes
technology (Air Liquide, Bohlen & Doyen,
Linde, Siemens, Vattenfall Europe), oil (Shell,
Total), and utility (EnBW) companies, most
of the German car manufacturers (BMW,
Daimler, General Motors/Opel, Volkswagen,
plus Ford, Honda, Hyundai, and Toyota),
NEWS
and three major public transport companies
(Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe BVG, Hamburger
Hochbahn, Stuttgarter Straßenbahnen
SSB). The German National Innovation
Programme for Hydrogen and Fuel Cell
Technology (NIP) has sponsored the CEP
since 2008.
Bohlen & Doyen GmbH, Wiesmoor, Germany.
Tel: +49 4944 301437, www.bohlen-doyen.com/
bohlendoyen-en
Clean Energy Partnership:
www.cleanenergypartnership.de/en
National Innovation Programme for Hydrogen and Fuel
Cell Technology: http://tinyurl.com/germany-nip
IRD Fuel Cells E1050
electrolyser system for
household use
D anish fuel cell developer IRD Fuel
Cells has launched its Elze E1050
electrolyser, a cost-efficient, modular
system targeted at residential
applications. The unit has now been
approved to meet electromagnetic
compatibility (EMC) requirements in
Europe.
IRD manufactures hydrogen PEM and direct
methanol fuel cell units for small-scale backup
power and micro combined heat and power
(CHP) applications. Its new PEM electrolyser
is the final key to providing fuel cells with
hydrogen, produced utilising renewable energy
from wind turbines and solar panels, and
converted to energy when these cannot meet
the demand. The company sees this sustainable
and renewable combination as the energy
solution of the future.
IRD has utilised its years of experience in
fuel cells to develop the E1050 electrolyser,
which is designed for the stable, high-quality
supply of hydrogen, produced onsite to avoid
transportation problems and costs. The PEM
electrolysis cell can start up within minutes,
and produces hydrogen at 50 bar (725 psi),
so it can be stored in order to meet occasional
peaks in demand. The hydrogen is produced at
high purity, and the dew point can be adjusted
to meet individual needs. Electrolyser units can
be cascaded to meet the required output, in
steps of 1 Nm3/h.
IRD led the European-funded PrimoLyzer
(Pressurised PEM Electrolyzer stack) project
in 2010–2012, to develop, construct and test
a cost-minimised, highly efficient and durable
PEM electrolyser stack designed for integration
with domestic micro CHP systems. It is
currently coordinating the Danish DuraPEM
9
Fuel Cells Bulletin