In another key conclusion, green hydrogen appears to be “the most appropriate large scale production method” for 2035 and beyond, based on the status of available technologies.
The report provides a detailed look at the key factors that will determine hydrogen’s future as a sustainable road transport fuel – a shift which could be vital to reach the Government’s Net Zero 2050 targets.
Hydrogen is an emerging player in the road transport energy mix and part of a portfolio of green energy solutions that are at different points on their evolutionary timelines for replacing fossil fuels. However, for hydrogen to be utilised in the future, policymakers and industry need to consider its role now, as well as the infrastructure needed and make investment for this to happen.
The need to fully refuel and recharge in under 10 minutes is “essential,” it adds.
Joanne Cowell, lead author of the report, and member of the IET’s Transport Panel and Technical Director at Costain, said there is significant focus on electricity as a viable alternative energy source for road transport, and in many cases battery electric vehicles are likely to be the most appropriate option.
She said, “However, hydrogen has the potential to provide another alternative, particularly for certain applications where the characteristics of hydrogen are an advantage for the consumer. For example, for emergency service response vehicles where there is an essential requirement to fully recharge in less than ten minutes, or the weight and payload of a HGV lorry that cannot accommodate a battery, or where availability of electricity supply is an issue, such as in off-highway usage in construction, or remote rural areas.”
The principal user advantages of hydrogen powered vehicles are their short refuelling time (comparable with petrol station dwell time), as well as their comparable range and that comparable payloads can be achieved without adding to vehicle weight, the report states.
The range of a hydrogen powered vehicle is broadly comparable to its petrol or diesel counterpart but, as the UK’s EV roll-out has demonstrated, having readily available refuelling points in the right locations (and in sufficient quantities) is necessary to give consumers the confidence to adopt alternative fuelled vehicles.
According to mobile hydrogen refuelling specialist NanoSUN, despite the ‘promising development’ of fixed hydrogen refuelling stations, “implementation of an effective hydrogen refuelling structure is slow.” A typical fixed facility takes up to two years to build and can cost around £2 million.
These factors hinder the adoption of hydrogen- fuelled, zero-emission vehicles, due to fleet owners struggling to fund the high capital expenditure.
Currently the most cost-effective and convenient way of storing and distributing hydrogen is in its gaseous form in high-pressure cylinders, tubes or tanks because the hydrogen economy is still very small.
In future, assuming larger demands for hydrogen, it is expected that pipelines could prove to be the most effective method of transporting large volumes of across large distances, with metal hydrides and carbon nanotubes also playing a part.