Just recently, a new series of Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Development plans from the Northeast Electrochemical Energy Storage Cluster (NEESC) claim that there will be 10,800 fuel cell vehicles and 110 hydrogen refueling stations by 2025. This new plan is an addition to the eight-state agreement from 2014 to have 3.3 million emission-free vehicles on the road by 2025. So far, the plan has been outlined for Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, and Rhone Island. The other three states - Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont - do not have specific plans as of yet.
Blanco also gave the press release of the announcement from the NEESC. According to them, the plans were created with support from the Small Business Administration (SBA) and from various industry stakeholders including automakers, gas suppliers, and fuel cell companies. As electric vehicles will slowly replace gasoline vehicles, stress will be put on the US electrical grid. If hydrogen vehicles are also integrated into the market, emissions will be cut down immensely and the stress on electricity will decline as hydrogen cars use other sources of power. Lastly, once these vehicles make it on the market, is is predicted that the hydrogen and fuel cell business will capture a huge share of the global energy and transportation market and will significantly increase the number of clean energy jobs in the Northeast.
As stated in the news press, the plan is to have about 1,300 megawatts of stationary fuel cell capacity, 10,800 fuel cell cars, 640 fuel cell buses, and 110 hydrogen refueling stations by 2025.
This is great information for the final essay. It shows just how much the fuel cell industry is going to grow and improve just within the next decade. It will take a while to implement fuel cells nationwide, but states are realizing the benefits of fuel cell technology and are becoming more willing to accommodate for it.
APA Citation:
Blanco, S. (2015, March 1). 10,000 hydrogen cars planned for US northeast. Retrieved March 27, 2015, from autoblog.com: www.autoblog.com/2015/03/01/10000-hydrogen-car-plan-us-northeast/
MLA Citation:
Blanco, Sebastian. 10,000 hydrogen cars planned for US northeast. 1 March 2015. 27 March 2015. <www.autoblog.com/2015/03/01/10000-hydrogen-car-plan-us-northeast/>.
Friday, March 27, 2015
Friday, March 20, 2015
How Soon for Hydrogen?
The article for this week is actually a collection of answers from a forum in Issues in Science & Technology. Most of the answers are a response to Joseph Romm's article titled "The Hype about Hydrogen," but some do not reference Romm's article and only discuss their opinions on hydrogen as a potential fuel source. Many of the writers do have some sort of expertise in hydrogen fuel research, but there are some notable contributions from the vice president of GM, an assistant secretary of the US Department of Energy, and a researcher from Oak Ridge National Laboratory.
For the most part, the authors in the forum agree that hydrogen definitely has it's problems in becoming a primary fuel source in the future, but they also agree that hydrogen will be worth it. Many of the authors bring up the cost of hydrogen as a fuel, but refute the problem of price with the fact that hydrogen is one of the cleanest fuels available and it is abundant. Larry Burns from GM argues completely against Romm saying that hydrogen is not just being hyped up, but it is becoming reality. He discusses the advances in fuel cell technology over the past few years and explains that GM is continuing to make fuel cells cheaper and consumer-friendly. David Garman sides with Burns and states that the government would not be spending over $90 million on fuel cell research if it was just a hype.
Overall, it seems from this forum that there is a group of people that greatly support the idea of hydrogen as a future fuel source. Of course, there is a bias in these opinions as all of the authors conduct or oversee research in improving hydrogen as a fuel source. However, it will give me a better idea of how the public may accept fuel cell vehicles in the future if they are educated about fuel cells. It helps me understand some of the criticism against FCVs (Romm's article) and how it might be countered. The forum has a lot of great information and statistics on what GM and the US Department of Energy have done the past few years to help forward this technology as well.
APA Citation:
Burns, L., Moore, J. F., Andrews, C. J., Freeman, S. D., & Mark, J. (2004). Forum. Issues in Science & Technology, 20(4), 12-17. Retrieved March 20, 2015, from https://hal.weber.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=13872522&site=ehost-live
MLA Citation:
Burns, Larry, et al. "Forum." Issues in Science & Technology 20.4 (2004): 12-17. 20 March 2015. <https://hal.weber.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=13872522&site=ehost-live>.
For the most part, the authors in the forum agree that hydrogen definitely has it's problems in becoming a primary fuel source in the future, but they also agree that hydrogen will be worth it. Many of the authors bring up the cost of hydrogen as a fuel, but refute the problem of price with the fact that hydrogen is one of the cleanest fuels available and it is abundant. Larry Burns from GM argues completely against Romm saying that hydrogen is not just being hyped up, but it is becoming reality. He discusses the advances in fuel cell technology over the past few years and explains that GM is continuing to make fuel cells cheaper and consumer-friendly. David Garman sides with Burns and states that the government would not be spending over $90 million on fuel cell research if it was just a hype.
Overall, it seems from this forum that there is a group of people that greatly support the idea of hydrogen as a future fuel source. Of course, there is a bias in these opinions as all of the authors conduct or oversee research in improving hydrogen as a fuel source. However, it will give me a better idea of how the public may accept fuel cell vehicles in the future if they are educated about fuel cells. It helps me understand some of the criticism against FCVs (Romm's article) and how it might be countered. The forum has a lot of great information and statistics on what GM and the US Department of Energy have done the past few years to help forward this technology as well.
APA Citation:
Burns, L., Moore, J. F., Andrews, C. J., Freeman, S. D., & Mark, J. (2004). Forum. Issues in Science & Technology, 20(4), 12-17. Retrieved March 20, 2015, from https://hal.weber.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=13872522&site=ehost-live
MLA Citation:
Burns, Larry, et al. "Forum." Issues in Science & Technology 20.4 (2004): 12-17. 20 March 2015. <https://hal.weber.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=13872522&site=ehost-live>.
Thursday, March 5, 2015
Fuel Cell Cars: Problems and Progress
In the article from Nature, Jeff Tollefson points out that although fuel cell development seemed to disappear into obscurity for nearly a decade, fuel cell vehicles may be the cars of the future. After the increase in funding towards fuel cell research in 2003, fuel cell progress fell out of the public eye due to the beginnings of electric vehicles. Yet research in hydrogen fuel continued and multiple car manufacturers - including Dailmer, Ford, GM, Honda, Hyundai, Kia, Renault, Nissan, and Toyota - signed a statement in 2010 that declared that fuel cell vehicles were going to come out by 2015. However, there are many problems that fuel cells still face, some are close to being solved and others will need lots of work. For now, researchers continue to argue over hydrogen and electric vehicles, trying to decide just which one would be best in the long run.
The second article is from USA Today and describes that hydrogen fuel is regaining its popularity among automakers. As of 2012, Nissan was added to the list of manufacturers that were promising hydrogen fuel cell vehicles by 2015. Over the last, decade fuel cell cars have only been available at auto shows but the talk centered on the new plug-in electric vehicles. With these vehicles receiving some criticism for their short range and high cost, hydrogen seems to be back in style. Automakers have now made brand new announcements on new cars including Nissan's TeRRa and Honda's FCX Clarity. Interestingly enough, GM, a leading company in fuel cell research, has yet to announce a new vehicle. According to Charlie Freese, the director of GM's research, fuel cell cars are a "challenging business case going forward," but there are problems that need to be solved. There are too few hydrogen stations, meaning there is no way for hydrogen cars to be released publicly, at least not yet.
Both of these articles, written within two years of each other, cover the same basic idea that hydrogen fuel is beginning to get public attention again after popularity went down in 2003. The articles agree that fuel cell cars would be a great technology to have in the near future, but there are many problems that still need to be solved. With multiple automakers working on these futuristic vehicles, hydrogen fuel cell cars are bound to be the cars of the future.
The most important point that comes from these articles is that hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are a near possibility and have come a long way, but they still have a ways to go to be released to the public. Researchers are doing what they can to improve fuel cell engines overtime, but it is possible that it may be a while for them to make it out and be available for anyone on the market. Then, it's also important to note just how many models are actually available as hydrogen vehicles. Many popular automakers are dedicated to making a fuel cell vehicle, one that the public will accept both in price and in style. Lastly, it is important to keep in mind that fuel cell vehicles face and will face criticism. Just like with the first electric vehicles, hydrogen fuel cell cars will have to overcome public scrutiny.
MLA Citations:
Tollefson, Jeff. "Hydrogen vehicles: Fuel of the future?" Nature 29 April 2010: 1262-1264. 5 March 2015. <https://hal.weber.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=49787283&site=ehose-live>.
Woodyard, Chris. "Automakers take fresh look at hydrogen fuel cells." USA Today 2 October 2012. 5 March 2015. <www.usatoday.com/story/driveon/2012/10/02/hydrogen-fuel-cells-2015/1605229/>.
APA Citations:
Tollefson, J. (2010, April 29). Hydrogen vehicles: Fuel of the future? Nature, 464(7293), pp. 1262-1264. Retrieved March 5, 2015, from https://hal.weber.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=49787283&site=ehose-live
Woodyard, C. (2012, October 2). Automakers take fresh look at hydrogen fuel cells. USA Today. Retrieved March 5, 2015, from www.usatoday.com/story/driveon/2012/10/02/hydrogen-fuel-cells-2015/1605229/
The second article is from USA Today and describes that hydrogen fuel is regaining its popularity among automakers. As of 2012, Nissan was added to the list of manufacturers that were promising hydrogen fuel cell vehicles by 2015. Over the last, decade fuel cell cars have only been available at auto shows but the talk centered on the new plug-in electric vehicles. With these vehicles receiving some criticism for their short range and high cost, hydrogen seems to be back in style. Automakers have now made brand new announcements on new cars including Nissan's TeRRa and Honda's FCX Clarity. Interestingly enough, GM, a leading company in fuel cell research, has yet to announce a new vehicle. According to Charlie Freese, the director of GM's research, fuel cell cars are a "challenging business case going forward," but there are problems that need to be solved. There are too few hydrogen stations, meaning there is no way for hydrogen cars to be released publicly, at least not yet.
Both of these articles, written within two years of each other, cover the same basic idea that hydrogen fuel is beginning to get public attention again after popularity went down in 2003. The articles agree that fuel cell cars would be a great technology to have in the near future, but there are many problems that still need to be solved. With multiple automakers working on these futuristic vehicles, hydrogen fuel cell cars are bound to be the cars of the future.
The most important point that comes from these articles is that hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are a near possibility and have come a long way, but they still have a ways to go to be released to the public. Researchers are doing what they can to improve fuel cell engines overtime, but it is possible that it may be a while for them to make it out and be available for anyone on the market. Then, it's also important to note just how many models are actually available as hydrogen vehicles. Many popular automakers are dedicated to making a fuel cell vehicle, one that the public will accept both in price and in style. Lastly, it is important to keep in mind that fuel cell vehicles face and will face criticism. Just like with the first electric vehicles, hydrogen fuel cell cars will have to overcome public scrutiny.
MLA Citations:
Tollefson, Jeff. "Hydrogen vehicles: Fuel of the future?" Nature 29 April 2010: 1262-1264. 5 March 2015. <https://hal.weber.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=49787283&site=ehose-live>.
Woodyard, Chris. "Automakers take fresh look at hydrogen fuel cells." USA Today 2 October 2012. 5 March 2015. <www.usatoday.com/story/driveon/2012/10/02/hydrogen-fuel-cells-2015/1605229/>.
APA Citations:
Tollefson, J. (2010, April 29). Hydrogen vehicles: Fuel of the future? Nature, 464(7293), pp. 1262-1264. Retrieved March 5, 2015, from https://hal.weber.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=49787283&site=ehose-live
Woodyard, C. (2012, October 2). Automakers take fresh look at hydrogen fuel cells. USA Today. Retrieved March 5, 2015, from www.usatoday.com/story/driveon/2012/10/02/hydrogen-fuel-cells-2015/1605229/
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