Here's a recent release from the WorldFuels.com site which summarizes some of the conclusions of this article:
Fuel Cell Study Examines Possible Fuel Usage
Timely and effective fuel reforming technology development may be the most difficult challenge to early fuel cell vehicle (FCV) commercialization, according to a recent report prepared for the California Fuel Cell Partnership (CFCP).
"To bring FCVs to market as early as possible, this challenge must be met successfully within the same time-frame as cost-effective fuel cells and related infrastructure," the report, "Bringing Fuel Cells to Market: Scenarios and Challenges with Fuel Alternatives," concluded.
"This is especially so for the on-board reforming of liquid fuels considered in this study: gasoline, ethanol and methanol. Not all fuels are equally reformed, and their reformers are at varying stages of development," the report stated. "Competitive off-board reforming of natural gas and liquid-fuel hydrogen carriers also face substantial challenges."
The report was prepared of the CFCP to identify challenges and solutions for four different fuel scenarios and to determine the actions necessary, with regard to both industry and government, to commercialize light-duty FCVs in a near- to mid-term timeframe.
For hydrogen to be the FCV fuel of the future, hydrogen infrastructure costs and risks need to be addressed in negoti-ations among automakers, fuel providers and government, the study concluded. Also, a low cost, highly integrated packaged fuel processing and vending apparatus is essential to the future success of hydrogen, and needs extensive development. Safety is a key concern regarding the use of hydrogen as a fuel, so a strateic public education campaign is needed well before market entry to clarify hydrogen safety and convenience, according to the study.
The key issue for gasoline use in FCVs is the avoidance of sulfur contamination of the fuel cell. Beyond that, there are "virtually no other concerns except for the gasoline reformer chal-lenge," the study noted. As far as methanol is concerned, its "acute toxicity... in human contact will require a variety of mitigations, as well as strenuous public education," and the methanol reformer's early success is crucial, both in performance and cost, the report noted.
"Ethanol cannot be a stand-alone fuel for FCVs, due both to availability and price, and must be paired with naphtha or gasoline as a low-volume hedge against gasoline price excursions," the report said.
While the study makes clear that it does not choose a "winner" among the fuels, it is evident that gasoline seems to be in the lead, thus far. |
