BMW starts European road tests of hydrogen fuel cell cars – CNBC
A BMW i Hydrogen Subsequent car photographed in Munich, Germany, on March 12, 2021.
Andreas Gebert | Bloomberg | Getty Pictures
The BMW Group has started To look at cars that use a hydrogen gasoline cell drivetrain, with the German automotive huge placing the know-how by way of its paces “in on A daily basis circumstances on European roads.”
In an announcement Wednesday, the agency defined prototypes of the BMW i Hydrogen Subsequent Can be examined on A selection of metrics collectively with reliability, safety and effectivity.
It described hydrogen gasoline cell tech as having the “Prolonged time period potential to complement inner combustion engines, plug-in hybrid methods and battery-electrical cars.”
The know-how might, BMW went on So as to add, “Discover your self to be A lovely various to battery-electrical drive trains – particularly For patrons who Do not have Their very personal entry to electrical charging infrastructure or who frequently drive long distances.” It is hoped the checks will Finish in the manufacturing of a small-collection mannequin in 2022.
Study extra about clear power from CNBC Professional
The cars’ particular person cells are provided by Toyota, with BMW creating the gasoline cell stack and full drive system. The BMW i Hydrogen Subsequent’s hydrogen tank Could be crammed in three to 4 minutes, The agency says, offering drivers with “A selection of a quantity of hundred kilometres in all climate circumstances.”
Described by the Worldwide Energy Company as a “versatile power automotiverier,” hydrogen has Pretty a Little bit of purposes And will be deployed in sectors Similar to enterprise and transport.
BMW is Definitely one of a quantity of automotive corporations exploring the potential of hydrogen And is not new to The thought of using it in a car.
Again in November 2006 it introduced manufacturing of the BMW Hydrogen 7 had started, describing the car as “the world’s first hydrogen-powered luxurious saloon automotive.” The Hydrogen 7, it added, used an inner combustion engine and was In a place to run on petrol (gasoline) or liquid hydrogen.
More recently, on Tuesday Jaguar Land Rover said it was Engaged on the prototype of a hydrogen gasoline cell electrical car, with testing of the idea slated To start out later this yr.
The car Shall be based mostly on The mannequin new mannequin of The agency’s Land Rover Defender, and is An factor of JLR’s broader Try and fulfill a goal of zero tailpipe emissions by the yr 2036. Testing will Think about areas Similar to gasoline consumption and off-road capabilities.
Completely different producers Which have dipped into the hydrogen gasoline cell market embrace Toyota and Honda, whereas smaller corporations Similar to Riversimple are additionally Engaged on hydrogen-powered automotives.
This week additionally noticed Volvo Automobiles announce It’d companion with SSAB, a Sweden-headquartered metallic producer, to “collectively discover The event of fossil-free, Prime extreme quality metallic To be used Inside the automotive enterprise.”
Based on Volvo Automobiles the collaboration will, amongst other issues, Think about an SSAB initiative referred to as Hybrit, which was established alongside power enterprise Vattenfall and LKAB, which produces iron ore.
The Hybrit enterprise’s objective, Volvo Automobiles says, is to “substitute coking coal, traditionally needed for iron ore-based mostly metallicmaking, with fossil-free electricality and hydrogen.”