EV alternative for light/medium duty trucks
So much wheel spinning on EVs, what if they are not the right path forward? The biggest problem with renewable power and EVs is storage, the second is storage, and the third is storage. Another pat...
Forum Discussion
RambleOnNW wrote:map40 wrote:
Let's get back to the thread before this goes political and the moderators end up having to close this out. No state will ban EVs and although EVs will grow in the market, they won't displace ICEs.
As far as Hydrogen, the chasllenges are even worse than electricity for massive applications. Although it is fast to transfer to the vehicle, the space required to accomodate a decent amount in a vehicle is significantly more than gas or batteries and the distribution network is non-existent (keep in mind, for EVs the distribution network was already built). Production of hydrogen continues to be a problem unles the latest new technologies work out (like direct-from-sea hydrogen mining).
Hydrogen is today where EVs were 15-20 years ago, after Honda and GM produced their first electric cars. The technology has great potential, but there won't be real market applications for at least a decade.
First of all, the phase-out of ICE vehicles in some states by 2035 still allows for 20% plug-in hybrid ICE vehicles. Also hydrogen vehicles are EVs, Fuel-cell-electric-vehicles (FCEV) and they are included in the EV 2035 mandates.
Hydrogen is far more energy dense than lithium batteries. The Nexo in the previous article has a capacity of 14 lbs of hydrogen which has a gross energy of 250 kWh which allows for a 380 mile range.
The US is planning to fund up to 8 hydrogen hubs. Actually hydrogen is being distributed via liquid hydrogen tankers today and can be used to distribute the hydrogen from the hubs.
US will have to race to keep up with the progress of the rest of the world. Europe is phasing out diesel semis by 2040. Green hydrogen produced fossil-free steel was shipped to Volvo 18 months ago link. Denmark for example is planning a 1 GW, 400 ton per day green hydrogen facility that will fuel 1/3 of their semi trucks. You can view the design here.. Australia goes all-in on green hydrogen link.
Yep. Europe will be on the cutting edge of this out of necessity. For smaller vehicles electric is nice because you can fuel at home in your driveway. And it’s relatively cheap compared to gas. Hydrogen is pricey. And the amount of solar homes is growing really fast so much of your fuel comes from your roof.
It will be fun to watch.
