Before the seminar started, Iwatani were very kind to offer Heston Harper and I a test drive in a fuel cell vehicle. Of course, this rare offer was instantly and gratefully accepted, and we were led to the Iwatani building’s multi-storey car park.

To our surprise and delight, not only were we offered a ride in a real-life fuel cell vehicle, we were offered a choice of which vehicle we wanted to experience! For in front of us was not one fuel cell vehicle, but two. Iwatani lease a Toyota FCHV and a Honda FCX from the respective auto manufacturers for a monthly fee, and we had a choice of which to ride in! We decided to opt for the larger Toyota, and were soon inside and strapped in. The choice was not an easy one, and we look forward to a test drive in an FCX before too long!

Inside, the FCHV is as real and well-finished as any automobile turned out by Toyota. This was no laboratory prototype! After a brief inspection of the interior, I glanced over at the central console and to my great surprise found that the FCHV was ready to move – fully started and operating. I had experienced neither a whisper nor a tremor when our driver started the vehicle – it really was that quiet and smooth.

I did not travel in a vehicle in Japan that failed to have a central touch-screen computer that performs a variety of functions. This, however, was by far the most interesting. As well as performing typical automotive computer functions, this display could provide a real-time view of the fuel cell’s performance and operation. Thus, as we pulled off, we could see the power generated by the 90kW fuel cell stack being fed to the vehicle’s two motors. As the journey progressed, we could follow the read-out easily to view the efficiency, power output and remaining fuel (gaseous hydrogen), as well as other key variables. One surprise to me (although it shouldn’t have been) was the reversing of the direction of flow of electricity when the vehicle braked. It was actually possible to see the electricity generated from the regenerative braking system going back into the storage battery!

The FCHV’s performance was impressive, especially the acceleration which allowed us to navigate Tokyo’s busy streets with ease. The views from the Toyota’s windows were made all the more amazing for me to know that I was moving in a car, but that our only emissions were water vapour. The PEM fuel cell system that drives the FCHV is 90 kW. This represents a huge amount of power – enough to power around 60 average UK homes!

We arrived at the JHFC Ariake hydrogen refuelling station after a very pleasant and quiet ride. The refuelling station is a joint construction by Iwatani and Showa Shell and includes components from manufacturers such as Nitto Kohki (nozzles). Both vehicle and refuelling station were part of the JHFC program – a large-scale project in Japan aimed at collecting real world data about operating hydrogen-fuelled fuel cell vehicles in typical environments. More information about the JHFC program is attached as a PDF below. Needless to say, it is a very interesting program. There are twelve refuelling stations involved in the project, and each is providing valuable data and experience about operating different types of refuelling station. Some stations rely on deliveries of liquid hydrogen generated elsewhere, some use on-site electrolysis, some use on-site reformation of different fuels. Others are connected to other hydrogen infrastructure using a pipeline.

The Iwatani representative who was kind enough to be our guide for the visit told us a little about this project, one interesting point in particular was that the outright aim of the JHFC project is not to find the ‘best’ option, but to gain a wide range of baseline data.

The Ariake refuelling station that we visited relied on delivery of liquid hydrogen, but had a very sophisticated system that allowed liquid H2 refuelling where desired, but it also used a recovery system to store gaseous hydrogen and allow gaseous H2 refuelling at a separate nozzle.

After a very informative and interesting tour of the refuelling station, we were very pleased to escape the icy winds and return to the warm sanctuary of the FCHV. The journey back through Tokyo was uneventful and as quiet and smooth as we had come to expect.

Whilst the Toyota FCHV is a smooth and polished prototype, it is nevertheless a prototype, and mass production of fuel cell vehicles is still about ten years away. What the FCHV does demonstrate is that fuel cell vehicles are entirely possible and realistic. As everyone involved with fuel cells know, whilst the technology itself is complicated enough, the transition from internal combustion engines to fuel cells will be additionally complicated (by factors such as refuelling infrastructure, codes, standards, capital investment, awareness and training amongst others). What the FCHV and its contemporaries provide is a goal. It will be up to the automotive manufacturers of the world to stake their bets on the not only the final fuel cell technologies that we may end up with, but also on those technologies that will best enable the overall transition.

Hydrogen-fuelled internal combustion engines and internal combustion engine-battery hybrid vehicles are both relatively cheap technologies that help bridge the gap between the present and the future. Certain strategies are also becoming favoured in the strive for change, such as the focus on introduction of fuel cells and hydrogen refuelling locations for fleet vehicles and buses that can return to a central refuelling location with regularity.

Overall, the test drive in the Toyota FCHV and the visit to the JHFC Ariake Hydrogen Refuelling Station left us with a very favourable impression of Japan’s fuel cell and hydrogen activities, and those of Toyota, Iwatani and the JHFC project in particular.

On a final note, Japan really is leading the way in fuel cell and hydrogen technology, there is much to be learnt from their attitude towards social and environmental responsibility, and from their adoption of alternative energy technologies. Fuel cells and hydrogen fuel are coming, in a very real, tangible and sensible way. Currently though, it looks like most of the fuel cell developments and profits will be rising in the East, with Japan’s “rising sun” flag acting as a most visual reminder to those elsewhere that the early bird who catches this worm will be powerful indeed!

About Fuel Cell Markets

Fuel Cell Markets Ltd is focussed on accelerating the commercialisation of hydrogen, fuel cell and related technologies. The marketplace at www.fuelcellmarkets.com is an interactive, open industry database. It has been specifically designed to help improve communications within the emerging alternative energy industry, provide a bridge to traditional industry and energy markets and to offer an educational resource for end-users that will help drive demand for alternative and sustainable energy solutions.

Related links

Fuel Cell Markets Ltd
www.fuelcellmarkets.com

Iwatani
www.iwatani.com

JHFC
www.jhfc.jp/e/