Mechanical Engineering Journals International

Through the improvement of the fuel cell stack and the optimization of power system control strategy, the lifetime of a fuel cell vehicle has improved a lot, while in contrast with the traditional vehicle, we still have space to improve. The current FCV durability target for 2015 (US) is 5,000 hours, or 150,000 miles [1]. In addition, due to the catalyst precious metal Pt being used in the fuel cell stack and the price of the proton exchange membrane is so high, researchers proposed several methods by reducing the quantity to 0.05 mg/cm2 of Pt and improving the utilization rate of the catalyst to reduce the cost. Utilization of the non-precious metal catalyst, which is still in the development, is another important way to reduce the cost greatly. With the rising production of the fuel cell vehicle, general public will afford to buy it soon. Another challenge that restricts the development of the fuel cell vehicle is the hydrogen infrastructures. Nowadays, many countries have raised a broad range of government incentives to promote the new energy vehicle, including the hydrogen infrastructures. Recently, Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) demand a budget of 30 billion yen (approximately $400 million USD) for the 2013 fiscal year budget. METI intends to construct about 100 hydrogen refueling stations and the budget appropriation would also be used to fund development of a cheap hydrogen supply system.[Luo M (2012) Challenges in the Fuel Cell Vehicle]

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Last date updated on April, 2024