In reality, it is the center of a multimillion-dollar hydrogen fuel cell research and development project between UNLV Research Foundation, UNLV Center for Energy Development and the U.S. Department of Energy.

The conversion of the vehicle to one powered by a fuel cell costs approximately $50,000. The bulk of the money went to the 5.5 kilowatt fuel cell that was purchased from Massachusetts-based Nuvera Fuel Cells for approximately $30,000. Two high-pressure fuel tanks cost $5,000 each. The mechanical and electrical engineering schools at the UNLV Howard R. Hughes College of Engineering acquired the white-and-black vehicle from the Las Vegas Valley Water District.
UNLV's Rick Hurt points to full cells retrofitted on the truck.

"The primary thrust of the research has been with cars," said Robert Boehm, distinguished professor of mechanical engineering and a leader on the project. "But the (fuel cell) technology can also be used in remote power systems and future uses for cell phones, computers and other batteries."

The car breathes in air and mixes with hydrogen carried in high-pressure tanks in the fuel cell. The mixture produces the electricity that powers the vehicle.

SUMMER DEBUT

The vehicle is part of the Hydrogen Filling Station Project. Launched in 2003, UNLV has been developing a filling station for the water district. The truck, along with a second vehicle, will be returned to the water district. Funded year to year, the university and the water district hope to have the station opened by the end of the summer. The water district would then be able to expand its fleet of fuel-cell vehicles in the future.

UNLV is producing the hydrogen through electrolysis by splitting water with electricity. The first few phases of the project are going to be powered by solar photovoltaic cells.

"We see that as being a very green way of going," Boehm said. "It's something that you can run very easily off of solar or wind to generate the electricity."

One of the long-range goals is to develop an infrastructure in the hopes of being able to purchase fuel-cell vehicles commercially in the near future. Some experts believe that the cost of producing hydrogen fuel can be brought down over time if renewable resources such as wind, geothermal and/or solar are utilized in the conversion process.

The project is one of many interdisciplinary research and development projects taking place at UNLV with funding from U.S. Senate Energy and Water Appropriations subcommittee. Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), who is a ranking member of the committee, has helped funnel $48.05 million to the school for various research and development projects during the past two fiscal years.

UNLV is not the first local entity to pursue hydrogen fuel cell technology and receive help from Sen. Reid in the process. In 1999, the City of Las Vegas joined the Clean Cities Program under the DOE. A letter from Sen. Reid asked the DOE to help subsidize the cost and instillation of a hydrogen fuel site. In 2002, the first Hydrogen Energy Center in the country was opened in northwest Las Vegas. The $10.8 million price tag was shared between the DOE and Air Products and Chemicals. The Pennsylvania-based company also provides fuel to the Space Shuttle program.

While providing energy for the state's power grid, the facility's primary function is research into creating a hydrogen fuel infrastructure that will be essential to making fuel cells a viable fuel alternative to gasoline.

CARS BEING USED BY CITY

The city currently leases two Honda FCX vehicles in the city's motor pool. At a cost to the city of $600 a month, the $1 million cars are used by the city manager, city council members or the mayor and parking enforcement supervisors. One of the cars is usually seen at high-profile occasions such as grand openings or other special events. Last Wednesday, it was outside City Hall and has also been used in the Helldorado parade.

According to Dan Hyde, manager of fleet and transportation services for the City of Las Vegas, he approached all the major car manufacturers trying to convince them to lease vehicles to the city before Honda finally agreed. Las Vegas is in the second year of a year-to-year leasing program. With the price of the vehicles still out of consumers' reach, and a lack of a connective infrastructure, Hyde believes the nation is still 10 to 15 years away from seeing cars with fuel cells in driveways. Also, Honda FCX cars currently only travel 90 to 120 miles between fuelings, an average of approximately 10 miles per gallon. The cost to fill up the vehicle is equivalent to paying $4.50 a gallon for gas, according to Hyde.

"It's an amazing technology to see how it's evolving so quickly," Hyde said. "We are of the belief that the technology is there and that the resources are there. The only thing we seem to lack now is the will to get it done, which I think might be changing."

The senate and the DOE, responding to political pressure to lessen the country's dependence on oil, have launched a concentrated effort to pursue hydrogen fuel cells as a renewable energy source. Hydrogen is attractive to its proponents because it is one of the most common elements on Earth. During the 2003 State of the Union address, President Bush announced the $1.2 billion Hydrogen Fuel Initiative. Since 2005, UNLV has received nearly $20 million related to hydrogen fuel research.

'ULTRA-CLEAN OPTION'

In a Feb. 9 speech before the U.S. Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, DOE Secretary Samuel Bodman said the department will ask for $195.8 million for research and development of hydrogen and fuel cell technology for fiscal 2007, saying it "holds the promise of an ultra-clean and secure energy option for America's energy future." If approved, it would be a 26 percent increase over the 2006 fiscal budget.

Some critics have expressed concern over the wide flammability limit of hydrogen, a highly combustible gas. A very limited amount of the gas has to be present to combine with a spark to cause an explosion. Advocates of the fuel cells' safety point out that hydrogen, unlike gasoline or natural gas, is lighter than air and less dense, so it dissipates very quickly, seldom getting to the lower flammability limit. Only education and wider public understanding will convince consumers that people are not driving a four-wheel Hindenburg. According to Hyde and other fuel-cell proponents, combustible engines pose a greater threat.

With rising gas prices, environmentalists and a growing number of politicians are increasingly calling for more renewable energy options like the one being developed at UNLV. Although the science has advanced and the economics continue to come down, the real challenge to any change will be the development of an infrastructure capable of supporting whole new fuel consumption.

"I am certainly not optimistic in the next five years," Boehm said. "In 10 years I think we're going to get to see quite a few (fuel-cell vehicles), but probably not before 20 years in terms of a really big- scale application."