Hydrogen-powered car
Date: 01 April 2022 Tags: EnergyIssue
Union minister of Transport Nitin Gadkari recently travelled to Parliament on a hydrogen-powered car.
Background
The vehicle was Toyota Mirai, which has three hydrogen tanks, which can be refilled in about five minutes. It has a 1.24 kWh lithium ion battery pack powered by a 182 hp electric motor.
Details
The minister’s use of the vehicle is seen as a strong indication of shift in centre’s policy for exploring other mobility methods instead of conventional EVs.
Types of electric vehicles
-
Fuel Cell Electric Vehicle (FCEV), Battery-powered Electric Vehicle (BEV), hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs), and plug-in hybrid vehicles (PHEVs) are different types.
-
FCEVs use hydrogen gas to power an on-board electric motor. They are considered EVs as they are completely powered by electricity.
-
Compared to BEV, they are different as they follow traditional fuelling process. The fuelling time is about five minutes compared to 35-40 minutes for BEVs.
-
The biggest benefit of FCEV is that it has five times better energy storage per unit volume. This allows rider to go farther.
India’s policy on hydrogen vehicles
-
The government had announced plans to launch a comprehensive National Hydrogen Energy Mission.
-
A Hydrogen Energy Mission in 2021-22 was announced in budget for generating hydrogen from green power sources.