IEEE Electrification Magazine - March 2018 - 9

used and integrating new systems, such as storing renewable energy. overall, there are many combinations of problems, objectives, and solutions.
in this article, we focus on one component of a multitechnology strategy: hydrogen. hydrogen for transportation
applications can reduce emissions without sacrificing performance, be sourced locally via renewable resources, and
support the U.S. economy through jobs and advanced technology development. as a flexible energy carrier, hydrogen
can also support the electric power and industrial sectors.
With support from the U.S. department of energy (doe)
Fuel-cell technology office, the national renewable energy
Laboratory (nreL) is demonstrating ways to improve the
cost, performance, and durability of hydrogen production,
infrastructure, and end-use technologies.

a Sustainable Transportation Solution
The Questions
When hydrogen is discussed as a sustainable transportation solution, the following questions are commonly asked:
1) is hydrogen available and feasible in the near term?
2) Why should hydrogen be part of the solution for
reducing transportation emissions even if we still produce it from natural gas?
3) how will renewable hydrogen be cost effective and
able to meet the transportation demands?

The Answers
today, about ten million metric tons of hydrogen are produced each year for use primarily in industrial applications,

i.e., petroleum refining and fertilizer production. Most of
this hydrogen is produced via steam methane reforming,
which is the lowest-cost production method. hydrogen is
also being used in the United States for mobile and stationary fuel-cell applications. california now has more than 30
retail hydrogen-fueling stations for fuel-cell passenger vehicles, and these stations dispensed more than 100,000 kg of
hydrogen in 2016.
Fuel-cell electric vehicles (FceVs) are available for lease
and purchase in limited regions that have hydrogen infrastructure, mainly in california but also in some northeast
locations. hydrogen fuel-cell buses have been operating in
revenue transit service for more than a decade. Fuel-cell
forklifts are in use by a variety of companies because of
their demonstrated value in high-demand warehouse
operations, and fuel-cell trucks are in development
because of performance benefits, including extended
range, short refueling time, and vehicle driving capability
(e.g., acceleration and power).
Steam methane reforming of natural gas is currently
the most common and lowest-cost method used to produce hydrogen; however, there are many options in various stages of commercial readiness for hydrogen
production using renewable resources. the most technically advanced option is through water electrolysis with
renewable electricity. in fact, many renewable resources in
the United States, i.e., wind, solar, and biomass, can be
used to produce hydrogen.
currently, it is expensive to produce hydrogen renewably via electrolysis, and research and development (r&d)
is focused on reducing cost through advancing technology,

IEEE Electrific ation Magazine / MaR cH 201 8

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of IEEE Electrification Magazine - March 2018