Fuel Cell Update

摘要

Toyota remains committed to fuel cells. They are the powertrain of the future, said the carmaker. The company has taken a number of initiatives toward the creation of a hydrogen industry, such as selling the Mirai FCEV and the Sora FCEV bus, as well as allowing royalty-free use of its FCEV-patent licenses. This spring Toyota will begin selling a fuel-cell system that packages into a single compact module the technology’s main components: the fuel-cell stack, boost converter, air compressor and water pump. Applications for the module include trucks, trains and ships as well as stationary generators. Toyota introduced its second generation FCEV at the end of last year. The 2021 Mirai, a five-passenger sedan, lists for 49,500 US dollars and comes with 15,000 US dollars worth of free hydrogen fuel. The Mirai range is 402 miles. Fill-ups take about 5 min. The big hang-up thus far for FCEVs is the lack of hydrogen fuel stations. The California government is a big pro ponent of fuel-cell vehicles, but there are currently just 45 fueling stations in the entire state. Europe has 180 stations. As of December 2020, 11,000 Mirais were sold cumulatively since 2015, not in cluding the 2021 Mirai. The second-generation Mirai debuted in the USA in 2021, available only in California and Hawaii.