DOE OSTI2012
The Texas Hydrogen Highway project has showcased a hydrogen fuel cell transit bus and hydrogen fueling infrastructure that was designed and built through previous support from various public and private sector entities. The aim of this project has been to increase awareness among transit agencies and other public entities on these transportation technologies, and to place such technologies into commercial applications, such as a public transit agency. The initial project concept developed in 2004 was to show that a skid-mounted, fully-integrated, factory-built and tested hydrogen fueling station could be used to simplify the design, and lower the cost of fueling infrastructure for fuel cell vehicles. The approach was to design, engineer, build, and test the integrated fueling station at the factory then install it at a site that offered educational and technical resources and provide an opportunity to showcase both the fueling station and advanced hydrogen vehicles. The two primary technology components include: Hydrogen Fueling Station: The hydrogen fueling infrastructure was designed and built by Gas Technology Institute primarily through a funding grant from the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. It includes hydrogen production, clean-up, compression, storage, and dispensing. The station consists of a steam methane reformer, gas clean-up system, gas compressor and 48 kilograms of hydrogen storage capacity for dispensing at 5000 psig. The station is skid-mounted for easy installation and can be relocated if needed. It includes a dispenser that is designed to provide temperature compensated fills using a control algorithm. The total station daily capacity is approximately 50 kilograms. Fuel Cell Bus: The transit passenger bus built by Ebus, a company located in Downey, CA, was commissioned and acquired by GTI prior to this project. It is a fuel cell plug-in hybrid electric vehicle which is ADA compliant, has air conditioning sufficient for Texas operations, and regenerative braking for battery charging. It uses a 19.3 kW Ballard PEM fuel cell, will store 12.6 kg of hydrogen at 350 Bar, and includes a 60 kWh battery storage system. The objectives of the project included the following: (a) To advance commercialization of hydrogen-powered transit buses and supporting infrastructure; (b) To provide public outreach and education by showcasing the operation of a 22-foot fuel cell hybrid shuttle bus and Texas first hydrogen fueling infrastructure; and (c) To showcase operation of zero-emissions vehicle for potential transit applications. As mentioned above, the project successfully demonstrated an early vehicle technology, the Ebus plug-in hybrid fuel cell bus, and that success has led to the acquisition of a more advanced vehicle that can take advantage of the same fueling infrastructure. Needed hydrogen station improvements have been identified that will enhance the capabilities of the fueling infrastructure to serve the new bus and to meet the transit agency needs. Over the course of this project, public officials, local government staff, and transit operators were engaged in outreach and education activities that acquainted them with the real world operation of a fuel cell bus and fueling infrastructure. Transit staff members in the Dallas/Ft. Worth region were invited to a workshop in Arlington, Texas at the North Central Texas Council of Governments to participate in a workshop on hydrogen and fuel cells, and to see the fuel cell bus in operation. The bus was trucked to the meeting for this purpose so that participants could see and ride the bus. Austin area transit staff members visited the fueling site in Austin to be briefed on the bus and to participate in a fueling demonstration. This led to further meetings to determine how a fuel cell bus and fueling station could be deployed at Capital Metro Transit. Target urban regions that expressed additional interest during the project in response to the outreach meetings and showcase events include San Antonio and Austin, Texas. In summary, the project objectives were achieved in the following ways: Through presentations and papers provided to a variety of audiences in multiple venues, the project team fulfilled its goal of providing education and outreach on hydrogen technology to statewide audiences. The project team generated interest that exists well beyond the completion of the project, and indeed, helped to generate financial support for a subsequent hydrogen vehicle project in Austin. The University of Texas, Center for ElectroMechanics operated the fuel cell-electric Ebus vehicle for over 13,000 miles in Austin, Texas in a variety of routes and loading configurations. The project took advantage of prior efforts that created a hydrogen fueling station and fuel cell electric-hybrid bus and continued to verify their technical foundation, while informing and educating potential future users of how these technologies work.