Example: Honda Clarity
Hydrogen fuel cells have been around for decades – but they haven’t yet made it to consumer products because of cost. They directly generate electricity from a chemical reaction without any moving parts. The fuel cell generates electricity to power an electric motor, which drives the vehicle. Refuelling is from a special filling station.
Honda has taken the lead here through its FCX Clarity. Still in limited production, the Clarity is available only in Los Angeles (where there are suitable hydrogen filling stations).
It’s powered by a 100kW electric motor fed by a hydrogen fuel cell, which converts hydrogen and oxygen from the air into electricity (and water). A supplementary lithium-ion battery pack captures braking energy for reuse – just like a hybrid vehicle does.
The Clarity is a full-size car, about the size of a Honda Accord and with similar performance and range. It has 5-minute refuelling. Honda says it could start mass-producing hydrogen-fuel-cell vehicles by about 2020.
Report by Bill Whitley.
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