Rajan Wilcox
Fuel cell cars are vehicles that use hydrogen and oxygen to produce electricity. They are more efficient than conventional internal combustion engine vehicles and produce no harmful tailpipe emissions, emitting only water vapour and warm air. However, the environmental impact of fuel cell cars depends on how the hydrogen is produced. If hydrogen is produced with renewable energy, fuel cell cars may be cleaner and more efficient than fossil fuel cars. However, they are not as efficient as battery-electric vehicles, which consume much less energy. As of 2021, there were only two models of fuel cell cars publicly available: the Toyota Mirai and the Hyundai Nexo. The limited hydrogen infrastructure and the high cost of hydrogen fuel are some of the challenges facing the widespread adoption of fuel cell cars.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Environmental impact | Depends on the primary energy with which the hydrogen was produced. Fuel cell vehicles are only environmentally benign when the hydrogen was produced with renewable energy. |
| Efficiency | The efficiency of the entire energy chain is currently only half that of a BEV. However, if you look at the entire life cycle of FCEVs and BEVs, they are not far apart. |
| Cost | A kilogram of hydrogen costs around 14 euros, and a fuel cell car can travel about 100 kilometres on one kilogram of hydrogen. This makes the cost per kilometre of a hydrogen car roughly the same as for combustion vehicles. |
| Safety | Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are widely considered as safe as any other car. The high-pressure tanks are designed to survive even the highest-speed crashes without leaking or breaching. |
| Range | The three hydrogen cars sold in recent years all have EPA-rated ranges of 300 miles or more, though, like EVs, that range falls substantially at higher speeds. |
| Acceleration | Acceleration may be better in the new Honda CR-V e:FCEV, given the battery capacity of 17.7 kilowatt-hours—or roughly 10 times the size of the hybrid-only batteries in other hydrogen vehicles. |
| Weight | The new Honda hydrogen model is about 500 pounds heavier than a CR-V hybrid. |
| Refuelling time | Hydrogen cars only need to stop for a few minutes to refuel. |
| Noise | Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles produce less noise than conventional vehicles. |
| Emissions | Fuel cell vehicles are zero-emission vehicles, emitting only water vapour and warm air. |
| Fueling infrastructure | As of 2020, there was limited hydrogen infrastructure, with fewer than 50 hydrogen fuelling stations for automobiles publicly available in the U.S. California is the only state with a network of retail hydrogen fuelling stations. |
| Models available | As of 2021, there were only two models of fuel cell cars publicly available in select markets: the Toyota Mirai and the Hyundai Nexo. The Honda CR-V e:FCEV became available, for lease only, in very limited quantities in 2024. |
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What You'll Learn
Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are more efficient than conventional internal combustion engines
The efficiency of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles is particularly notable when compared to the large quantities of carbon emissions generated by conventional internal combustion engines in the transportation sector. Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles emit only water vapour, while traditional internal combustion engines that run on fossil fuels emit greenhouse gases and pollutants. This makes hydrogen fuel cell vehicles a promising alternative for reducing carbon emissions and improving air quality, especially in cities.
However, it is important to consider the source of hydrogen production. Hydrogen can be produced from renewable sources such as solar and wind energy using electrolysis, resulting in a neutral carbon footprint. On the other hand, if hydrogen is produced from fossil fuels, it can have an adverse impact on the climate. Most of the hydrogen used today comes from methane reform, a process that results in carbon emissions.
Despite the advantages of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, there are challenges to their widespread adoption. Creating a new hydrogen fuelling network has proven expensive and unreliable, and the fuel is currently much pricier for drivers than gasoline or electricity. Additionally, the vehicle powertrain for hydrogen fuel cell vehicles needs to be more complex to manage the quick flame speeds and high temperatures of hydrogen combustion.
Overall, hydrogen fuel cell vehicles have the potential to be more efficient than conventional internal combustion engines, but there are economic and technical hurdles to overcome before they can become a mainstream alternative.
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Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are environmentally friendly
Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are also classified as e-cars as they are powered by an electric motor. However, unlike other electric vehicles, hydrogen vehicles produce their own electricity. This is done through a fuel cell, which converts the hydrogen in the fuel tank into electricity. The electricity generated in the fuel cell flows to the electric motor and directly drives the vehicle, and/or it charges a battery that acts as temporary storage until the energy is needed for the drive. This "buffer" battery is significantly smaller and lighter than the battery of an all-electric car.
Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles also have a similar range to e-cars with very large battery storage. A single hydrogen refuelling of the BMW iX5 Hydrogen, for example, will take you 504 kilometres. The range of hydrogen vehicles does not depend on the outside temperature, so it does not deteriorate in cold weather. Additionally, hydrogen vehicles can be refuelled in about 5 minutes, which is similar to conventional internal combustion engine vehicles.
Hydrogen can be produced from diverse domestic resources with the potential for near-zero greenhouse gas emissions. For instance, hydrogen can be produced from renewable energy sources such as wind or solar energy, or as a by-product of industrial processes. In these cases, hydrogen production has a neutral carbon footprint. However, it is important to note that hydrogen production currently requires electrical energy, which may come from fossil fuels, negatively impacting the climate footprint of a hydrogen car.
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Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are safe
Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are widely considered to be as safe as any other car. The high-pressure tanks in these vehicles are designed to survive even the highest-speed crashes without leaking or breaching. Numerous crash tests have validated the safety of this design, with the tanks remaining undamaged and no hydrogen leaks. The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) also states that alternative-fueled vehicles, including hydrogen fuel cell and battery-powered electric cars, are not more hazardous than traditional internal combustion engines.
While hydrogen is flammable, so are gasoline and lithium-ion batteries. Hydrogen vehicles meet the same high safety standards as all other vehicles in their group. In fact, hydrogen technology is not new and has been tried and tested in various industries. For example, refineries already use large quantities of hydrogen when processing crude oil, and pipelines and storage facilities for hydrogen have been in operation for decades.
The state of California has implemented a set of rules to ensure that any escaping hydrogen from vehicles does not lead to explosions. These rules include draining hydrogen tanks in designated outdoor areas away from buildings and purging the rest of the system of any remaining hydrogen. While the creation of a new fueling network for hydrogen vehicles has been challenging and expensive, the safety measures in place indicate that hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are safe.
As for the environmental impact, hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are zero-emission solutions, emitting only water vapour from their tailpipes. While the production of hydrogen can lead to pollution, if the hydrogen is produced using renewable energy sources, it can have a neutral carbon footprint. Hydrogen can be produced during periods of excess renewable energy, such as wind or solar power, and it can also be captured as a by-product of industrial processes.
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Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are zero-emission vehicles
Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles (FCEVs) are electric vehicles that use hydrogen fuel cells to power an electric motor instead of an internal combustion engine. They are considered zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs) as they emit only water vapour and heat as by-products, keeping the air in cities clean. The conversion of hydrogen to electricity emits no pollutants that affect public health and minimises greenhouse gases (GHG) that contribute to climate change.
However, it is important to note that the environmental benefits of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles depend on how the hydrogen is produced. Hydrogen production requires electrical energy, and if this electricity comes from renewable sources, hydrogen production has a neutral carbon footprint. On the other hand, if fossil fuels are used to produce hydrogen, it can have an adverse impact on the climate. Additionally, hydrogen is often treated as waste in industrial processes, and fuel cell drives offer a way to upcycle it.
FCEVs differ from battery electric vehicles (BEVs) in that they produce electricity onboard instead of running on batteries that need to be plugged in to recharge. This electricity is produced by the hydrogen fuel cell stack, an assembly of individual membrane electrodes that use hydrogen and oxygen to generate electricity. The hydrogen is stored in a fuel tank onboard the vehicle until it is needed by the fuel cell. The amount of energy stored in the tank determines the power of the vehicle, which is defined by the size of the electric motor.
While FCEVs have the potential to reduce emissions and are safer than traditional cars, they face several challenges. Firstly, creating a new hydrogen fuelling network has proven to be expensive and unreliable. Additionally, hydrogen fuel is currently much pricier for drivers than gasoline or electricity. However, as hydrogen production increases, the price is expected to decrease.
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Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are expensive
Secondly, hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are expensive to run because of the high cost of hydrogen fuel. Hydrogen fuel costs around 14 per kilogram in the US and Europe, which is almost twice as much as gasoline per mile. This means that refuelling a hydrogen-powered car is much more expensive than refuelling a conventional car. For example, in 2021, hydrogen retailed at $16.50 per kilogram, making the fuel cost per mile for hydrogen cars three times higher than for hybrid gasoline vehicles and twice as high as for conventional gasoline vehicles.
The high cost of hydrogen fuel is due to its unique physical properties, and the fact that it is produced in smaller quantities than gasoline. Hydrogen advocates argue that as hydrogen production increases, the price per kilogram will decrease due to higher volumes and greater economies of scale. However, this is dependent on the development of new infrastructure, which is costly and time-consuming.
The rollout of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles and the necessary infrastructure is a "chicken-and-egg" problem: consumers are unlikely to buy hydrogen cars if there are not enough refuelling stations, and companies are unlikely to invest in more refuelling stations if there are not enough hydrogen cars on the road. This problem has prevented the widespread adoption of other alternative fuel vehicles, such as CNG cars.
Additionally, hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are currently much rarer than electric vehicles, with only 17,000 or fewer on US roads as of mid-2022. This is because they are more expensive to produce and run, and there is a lack of refuelling infrastructure outside of California.
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Frequently asked questions
Fuel cell cars are environmentally friendly as they emit only water vapour and warm air, keeping the air in cities clean. They are also more efficient than conventional internal combustion engine vehicles.
Fuel cell cars are expensive and unreliable. The fuel is much pricier for drivers than gasoline or electricity. The environmental impact of fuel cell vehicles depends on the primary energy with which the hydrogen was produced. If hydrogen is produced from fossil fuels, it ultimately has an adverse impact on the climate footprint of a hydrogen car.
Yes, fuel cell cars are widely considered as safe as any other car. The high-pressure tanks are designed to survive even the highest-speed crashes without leaking or breaching.
