Automotive Engineering - February 2023 - 28

BMW REAPPROACHES HYDROGEN
ADVANCED PROPULSION FEATURE
" The heavier
and larger the
vehicle, the
more hydrogen
makes sense. "
iX5 fuel-cell stack and
ancillary hardware.
The iX5 Hydrogen's fuelcell
propulsion system
including composite
storage tanks.
Assembly of an iX5 pilot-fleet vehicle shows the centerline
location of its main hydrogen tank.
they insist that if fully renewable, carbon-free transportation
is the ultimate goal, EVs and their infrastructure
can't possibly serve every vehicle or use case.
Electricity " is unlikely to work 100 percent of the
time, " says Hofmann, who co-authored a major white
paper on the hydrogen economy for VDE Renewables,
a quality-assurance service provider. According to his
paper: Electricity generation from wind and solar is
subject to strong daily and seasonal fluctuations. The
potential to produce " green " electricity also varies
greatly geographically. Hydrogen provides an optimal
solution for bridging the gap between volatile generation
and the need to supply green energy on-demand
across all sectors.
While BMW is focusing on passenger vehicles, the
company still sees medium-to-large trucks as hydrogen's
optimum play. " The heavier and larger the vehicle,
28 February 2023
the more hydrogen makes sense, " Hofmann says, as EV batteries deliver
ever-diminishing returns in range and cost.
Unlike electricity, hydrogen can be cheaply stored and moved via
pipeline, the BMW engineers noted. It can diversify the energy supply
chain and buttress it against shortages: The iX5 requires no lithium,
cobalt or nickel. Hydrogen could fill gaps in transportation that are
more expensive or impractical for electricity. Pointing to a German
infrastructure study, the BMW experts argue that building two complementary
infrastructures - electricity and hydrogen - ultimately
would cost less than electricity going it alone. As for a near-absence
of renewable hydrogen, a Sept. 2022 analysis by McKinsey & Co. asserts
green hydrogen's price will quickly fall below that of fossil hydrogen
as market penetration expands.
H2 backers also cite major governmental and environmental momentum
for hydrogen, including support under President Biden's
Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and growing fealty to the Paris
Accords. The EU is preparing rules calling for a minimum number of
hydrogen stations. Hofmann's study projects a roughly $240 billion
global investment in hydrogen through 2030. Yet the paper cautions
that current hydrogen investment remains largely tied to global subsidy
programs, with major uncertainty over expected return on private
investment.
That uncertainty extends to showrooms. BMW's iX5 is strictly a
technology testbed. BMW does intend to sell its first series-production
fuel-cell model by the end of the decade, however - around the
time it projects having 10 million EVs already on the road.
AUTOMOTIVE ENGINEERING
ALL IMAGES: BMW
Automotive Engineering - February 2023

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