Today is Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Day 10/08 taken for the of the atomic weight of hydrogen (1.008), has grown from a Washington, DC-focused event into an international celebration.
National Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Day was created five years ago by the Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Energy Association (FCHEA) to raise awareness of the technology.
Hyundai Celebrates H2 Day
Celebrating National Hydrogen Day 2019, Hyundai’s U.S.-market fuel cell SUVs, the NEXO fuel cell SUV and the Tucson fuel cell SUV, together have accumulated more than 8.4 million miles while emitting only clean water vapor. This cumulative distance is the equivalent of 17 round-trip journeys to the surface of the moon, a distance of approximately 238,900 miles.
The 2019 Hyundai NEXO hydrogen fuel cell electric SUV has earned a TOP SAFETY PICK+ award from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) for vehicles built after June 2019. The NEXO, which is only available in California, is the first such hydrogen fuel cell vehicle that IIHS has tested. A vehicle such as NEXO would not normally be included in the IIHS routine test schedule, but Hyundai nominated its own NEXO for early testing. Evaluating the NEXO was also beneficial to IIHS, by offering its first early opportunity to evaluate a hydrogen fuel cell vehicle.
To qualify for a 2019 TOP SAFETY PICK+ award, a vehicle must earn good ratings in the driver-side small overlap front, passenger-side small overlap front, moderate overlap front, side, roof strength and head restraint tests. It also needs an advanced or superior rating for front crash prevention and a good headlight rating. The NEXO, a midsize premium SUV, has good ratings in all six crashworthiness tests.
NEXO is the new technological flagship of Hyundai’s growing eco-vehicle portfolio and marks Hyundai’s continued momentum with the industry’s most diverse SUV powertrain lineup. The NEXO Blue model has an estimated range of 380 miles and the NEXO Limited Trim has an estimated range of 354 miles. NEXO Blue models have estimated MPGe of 65 city, 58 highway and 61 combined, while NEXO Limited models have an estimated MPGe of 59 city, 54 highway and 57 combined. NEXO refueling can be achieved in as little as five minutes, allowing a consumer lifestyle very similar to a comparable internal-combustion SUV in terms of both range and refueling speed. NEXO dealers include Keyes Hyundai in Van Nuys, Tustin Hyundai and Capitol Hyundai in Northern California.
Air Liquide Renews Liquid H2
Air Liquide announces plans to produce renewable liquid hydrogen at our plant to be located in North Las Vegas, Nevada. Hydrogen will be produced in part from renewable natural gas (RNG) upgraded from biogas using our advanced separation membrane technology.
The deployment trajectory for hydrogen energy infrastructure requires investments in the development of reliable and resilient hydrogen supply chain solutions. This large scale project will include production of 30 tons of liquid hydrogen per day. This project represents the first step expanding hydrogen supply to the region, enabling the market in California to continue its growth to an expected 200 stations by 2025. California currently has the largest total number of fuel cell vehicles and one of the largest networks of retail refueling stations in the world.
BMW Hydrogen is NEXT
On Twitter BMW notes Hydrogen fuel cell technology helps tackle the challenges of future mobility and climate change. BMW’s development vehicle – the BMWi HydrogenNEXT – underlines its commitment to emission-free mobility.
In 2022, the BMW Group is planning to present the next generation of hydrogen fuel cell electric drive systems in a small-series vehicle based on the current BMW X5. The BMW i Hydrogen NEXT provides an initial glimpse of what this model has in store. The BMW Group would start offering fuel cell vehicles for customers in 2025 at the earliest, but the timing very much depends on market requirements and overall conditions.
The BMW Group and Toyota Motor Corporation joined forces in 2013 to co-develop a drive system using hydrogen fuel cell technology. Since the summer of 2015, the BMW Group’s research wing has been testing a small fleet of prototype BMW 5 Series GT hydrogen fuel cell vehicles powered by a jointly developed drive system with a Toyota fuel cell stack.
In January 2017, the BMW Group and Toyota teamed up with eleven leading energy, transport and industrial companies to launch a global initiative known as the Hydrogen Council. Its aim is to forge a united vision and push ahead with the long-term ambition of a hydrogen-fuelled energy revolution. As of June 2019, the Hydrogen Council has grown to 60 member companies.