Because the world transitions away from fossil fuels, new power autos (NEVs) are coming to the fore as a substitute for the fossil fuel-guzzlers of the previous. Battery-electric autos stand out because the frontrunners main within the NEV class, with mass-market adoption being pushed in China, the EU and the US.
One other different to petrol and diesel is hydrogen-powered automobiles. To date, although, Toyota is one in every of solely two automotive producers with hydrogen automobiles obtainable commercially – and none in South Africa. Others, like Elon Musk’s Tesla, have dropped their hydrogen-fuel ambitions fully, saying the know-how “doesn’t make sense”.
Hydrogen autos work by the interplay of hydrogen – saved at excessive strain – with a gasoline cell to generate electrical energy. Contained in the gasoline cell, the hydrogen is break up right into a proton and electron. The electrons movement right into a circuit that powers the automobile’s motor and the protons react with oxygen to type water vapour – the one by-product of the response.
“The fact across the present mobility scenario for passenger autos is that every one main OEMs (the automotive producers) have dedicated to battery-electric autos to the purpose that that horse has bolted and none will flip again simply to supply hydrogen autos,” Greg Cress, principal director for automotive and e-mobility at Accenture, informed TechCentral in an interview final week.
“Additionally, a hydrogen automobile is definitely an electrical automobile. As an alternative of the battery being the power supply, you may have a hydrogen gasoline cell because the power to drive the motor,” he defined.
However there are people who see hydrogen autos as a greater different to automobiles utilizing inside combustion engines (ICE) powered by petrol or diesel, together with Hydrox Holdings CEO Corrie de Jager.
De Jager stated hydrogen automobiles make use of a clear power supply that, in principle, might utilise the identical logistics networks as petrol- and diesel-powered autos in that – in contrast to EVs, which have lengthy charging occasions – hydrogen autos might be refuelled rapidly. In response to De Jager, a five-minute refill of a hydrogen tank might present as much as 700km of vary.
Much less environment friendly
Cress, nevertheless, stated hydrogen autos are much less environment friendly than electrical autos when your complete power worth chain – from the place the power is sourced as much as it being utilized by the automobile – is considered.
“While you have a look at the power losses within the manufacturing of hydrogen versus charging a battery, you see large variations in effectivity. For instance, you lose about 84% of the power enter on petrol and diesel, which means solely 16% of that power is used to drive the automotive. Taking a look at battery-electric autos beneath the identical lens, you get 77% effectivity; with hydrogen, the effectivity output is simply 33%,” stated Cress.
He acknowledged that the longer vary that hydrogen gasoline supplies is a constructive which can result in hydrogen gasoline discovering a distinct segment in massive, long-haul vehicles alongside well-known logistics corridors. Within the passenger automobile market, nevertheless, hydrogen automobiles are going to face the identical challenges EVs confronted: new infrastructure for refuelling networks should be rolled out.
Learn: TCS | Pretoria agency Hydrox Holdings in world hydrogen ‘breakthrough’
“Shifting hydrogen round could be very costly and harmful – since it’s a gasoline, it should be pressurised. It might additionally leak. In truth, Shell has been closing down its hydrogen stations in California as a result of it will probably’t see the long-term viability of those distribution networks,” stated Cress.
California has the world’s most mature hydrogen automobile market, with two fashions – the Hyundai Nexo and the Toyota Mirai – obtainable for buy. A 3rd mannequin vary, the Honda Readability collection, is not provided.
There aren’t any commercially obtainable hydrogen-powered passenger automobiles in South Africa. Nonetheless, BMW in February launched three prototypes of its X5 SUV, dubbed the iX5 Hydrogen, to the native marketplace for testing as a part of a worldwide initiative.
“We’ve a fleet of fewer than 100 autos world wide that we’re utilizing to do real-world evaluations of how hydrogen autos may do as soon as we convey them to market. We’ve some in Dubai to check their efficiency in actually sizzling temperatures and three in South Africa to check how sensible they’re in third-world markets the place the infrastructure to assist them isn’t as available,” stated Hailey Philander, supervisor of group automotive communications at BMW South Africa.
In response to Philander, the iX5 Hydrogen’s two-tank system has a mixed 6l capability and makes use of gasoline cells manufactured by Toyota. She stated in utilizing these autos, BMW South Africa discovered {that a} five-minute fill-up of hydrogen interprets into about 500km of vary.
BMW has partnered with Anglo Platinum and Sasol in trialling the autos in South Africa, with Sasol supplying the hydrogen required for the venture.
Hydrogen might be sourced from methane gasoline, however the process is extremely polluting and opposite to the target of transferring away from fossil fuels in the direction of cleaner power sources. One other solution to supply hydrogen is thru electrolysis: passing a present by a water molecule to separate it into hydrogen and oxygen.
“Southern Africa is seen as a possible inexperienced hydrogen hub and, the place the infrastructure permits, we might develop and export inexperienced hydrogen for the remainder of the world,” stated BMW’s Philander.
Complementary
“We see the know-how as complementary to full electrical however with faster refuelling. The autos are additionally lighter, since you don’t have to hold batteries round. Electrical autos are properly suited to brief journeys and inside metropolis driving, however South Africans drive lengthy distances,” she stated.
In 2022, mining large Anglo American introduced a 220t hydrogen-powered prototype truck able to carrying 290t of ore designed for open pit operations. The prototype – a transformed Komatsu 930E – is powered by a 1.2MW battery pack and eight 100kW hydrogen gasoline cells.
Regardless of uncertainties across the future success of hydrogen gasoline within the passenger automobile market, hydrogen autos are gaining traction in industrial and marine functions, powering forklift vehicles and heavy-duty mining tools like Anglo’s vehicles.
In some components of the world, public transport techniques like trains and buses are turning to cleaner hydrogen gasoline as an alternative of diesel. For the gasoline to change into viable in South Africa, nevertheless, funding in infrastructure and distribution networks is important. – © 2024 NewsCentral Media
