Fuel Cells: Don’t Abandon Hope Yet!

This May the U.S. Department of Energy proposed large cuts to the Hydrogen Program’s light duty vehicle research and development funding.  (The $200 million allotted for 2009 has been slashed to $68 million.)  The current administration, while devoted to greening America, seems to think that a hydrogen vehicle will not be available commercially for the masses within 20 years.  Add to that the criticism that many have of fuel cells--that they still require the use of non-renewable resources to operate-- and the future of fuel cell vehicles seems pretty dismal.

But fuel cell technology is very possibly the answer we need during the next couple decades as planet earth goes through an enormous economic transition.  The rate at which oil is running out will make it increasingly expensive in the next few years and virtually all transportation and industry has been built on cheap, readily available oil.  Biofuels may be able to offset some of our needs, but scientists have already determined that there are simply not enough crops in the world to meet both the food and energy needs of the planet. Solar technology seems like a fantasy—development of a fully solar powered or electric car have serious limitations.

Even though fuel cells use non-renewable resources, they are far more versatile in that they can use almost any hydrocarbon fuel including methane and biofuel.  However, the process of converting fuel to energy is chemical rather than combustion, which means that the engine not only runs cleaner, producing virtually no pollution—but it is also far more efficient:

Exact calculations vary from study to study, but many automotive manufacturers have released data showing that FCVs are much more efficient than comparable ICE vehicles. Toyota has published research showing its conventional gasoline vehicle with a vehicle efficiency of only 16 percent, while its FCVH-4, running on hydrogen, is projected to achieve 48 percent vehicle efficiency - three times more efficient. General Motors (GM) claims that its fuel cell prototypes running on hydrogen have more than twice the efficiency of their conventional gasoline vehicles. [source]

What all this means is that while we are trying to find a viable solution for future transportations needs, hydrogen fuel cells can help us make the most of the remaining fossil fuels that we have.  Reports from every major car manufacturer in the world say that they are all in development of a hydrogen-based vehicle designed for the average consumer.  Toyota predicts theirs will be available on the market by 2015. 

Certainly we don’t want to give up the ghost now.  Cutting funding for the development of fuel cell technology is a mistake at this point in history when we need every bit of focus we can get on the energy crisis.  The technology already exists and is in use (although expensive), so we’re on the right track.  Fuel cell technology may be the very bridge that keeps us moving forward while cleaner options are developed.