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The Week in Germany: Business, Technology and the Environment October 12, 2007 German Embassy Helps Promote Sustainable Mobility with Hydrogen Cars
Guests at the German Embassy’s celebration of German Unity Day on October 3 had the opportunity to experience what just might be the future of sustainable personal mobility – a test drive in BMW’s Hydrogen 7, the first hydrogen-powered sedan. Running in hydrogen mode, the BMW Hydrogen 7 essentially emits nothing but water vapor, representing a major step in reducing harmful CO2 emissions. BMW loaned four of the vehicles to the Embassy for transporting official delegations as well as VIP test drives during the festivities last week. The German Consulate in New York also received one of the vehicles for its own festivities. German Ambassador Klaus Scharioth says that showing off the cars at the Embassy’s largest event of the year will be an important contribution to increasing public acceptance of alternative fuels. “If industry and governments can work together to create an alternative to gasoline that makes sense, we can address the political conflicts that arise around fossil fuels as well as contribute to addressing the problems of climate change and still ensure personal mobility in our society,” he said. “To get there, we have to show people that it is possible.” Ambassador Scharioth is joining a series of prominent individuals across the world that have driven Hydrogen 7’s ranging from German Economy Minister Michael Glos to Tonight Show Host Jay Leno. This program, dubbed the Hydrogen 7 Pioneers Program, is giving industry leaders and prominent figures in entertainment, politics, and business a BMW Hydrogen 7 for their daily use. By harnessing the power and influence of individuals who, like Ambassador Scharioth, are at the forefront of their respective disciplines, BMW hopes to continue to generate support of hydrogen-drive vehicles in the short term and stimulate demand for a viable hydrogen infrastructure in the long-term.
Flexibility takes you places A number of German automakers are working on hydrogen as an alternative to gasoline. DaimlerChrysler and VW have both announced progress on hydrogen fuel cells that will convert chemical energy from hydrogen and other compounds into electricity to run electric motors. By contrast, the Hydrogen 7 comes equipped with a 12-cylinder internal combustion engine capable of running on either liquid hydrogen or gasoline and is based on the BMW 760Li. BMW says that it chose a combustion engine because it delivers more power than a fuel cell, which is what BMW customers demand. Although projects like the public-private “Clean Energy Partnership” in Berlin have already put public hydrogen filling stations on the map in Berlin and California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s promised “Hydrogen Highway” has put a hydrogen infrastructure on the horizon in the US, there are only a few filling stations for the Hydrogen 7 in the US. The Hydrogen 7 could, in fact, run exclusively on hydrogen. However, given the challenge of limited infrastructure, the BMW is designed to also run on gasoline when necessary . Once the fuel tank is empty, the engine switches fuel automatically. The fuel in the two tanks gives the vehicle a combined range of 425 miles: 125 miles running on hydrogen. It is not a concept car, but a production model vehicle that has successfully completed the entire product development process. While the BMW Hydrogen 7 is not for sale, BMW says it represents a milestone in bringing forward hydrogen as the sustainable fuel for individual transportation. Rocket fuel, not rocket science BMW worked with the German industrial gases conglomerate Linde to develop mobile fueling stations that have accompanied the Hydrogen 7 through all the phases of product testing and now move around to service the cars in the areas where they have been loaned. For the drivers at the German Embassy, this means a trip to NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, which is hosting the mobile filling station while the cars are in Washington. According to BMW’s North American CleanEnergy Manager, Jason Perron, the US space agency is an ideal partner because they share an interest in hydrogen as a fuel. The boosters that propel rockets out of the upper atmosphere use virtually the same liquid hydrogen that drives the Hydrogen 7. “NASA also has a mission to educate the public about science, technology and the environment, and that is one of the things we are doing with these cars,” said Perron. Although keeping the hydrogen fuel cooled to – 418 degrees Fahrenheit while transferring it into the Hydrogen 7’s super-insulated vacuum tank requires some sophisticated equipment, the process is entirely automated, and refueling takes about six to eight minutes, meaning the driver does not need to be a rocket scientist to tank up. Pushing a button on the steering wheel switches the car into hydrogen mode without any change in performance. The only noticeable change is a slight change in the engine sound when the port injection system for the hydrogen kicks in. Drivers are unlikely to notice the most important change – the exhaust is replaced by a fine water vapor. Future fuel While hydrogen is the earth’s most common element, it does not naturally exist in a usable form. Most hydrogen used today is produced from natural gas at a substantial energy cost. Hydrogen’s promise lies in its potential as a carrier for energy generated from renewable, low-emission sources such as solar or wind power. One method of producing hydrogen, for example, is running an electric current through water to separate hydrogen from oxygen atoms. According to the Clean Energy Partnership in Berlin, this method of producing hydrogen would allow the storage of renewable energy at 70-90 percent efficiency. Germany is already producing over 12 percent of its electricity from renewable sources, and it is ahead of pace to meet its goal of generating 20 percent of its electricity from renewable energies by 2020. Links: Ambassador Klaus Scharioth in The Washington Post's "Reliable Source" Column Clean Energy Partnership Berlin Garden of Ideas: The German Embassy’s Celebration of German Unity, October 3, 2007 Germany
at the Washington Auto Show: Embassy Symposium Discusses “Engines
for the Future” |
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