UK hydrogen fuel network grows with new pump on M40

The hydrogen pump at Beaconsfield is the first in Britain to be located 'under the canopy' with the fossil fuels CREDIT: ED ROBINSON 

 

Anew hydrogen pump has been installed at Beaconsfield services on the M40, the second on Britain’s motorway network and the first to be built ‘under the canopy’ at an existing petrol station.

The machine has been supplied to Shell by Sheffield-based energy company ITM Power. It can be used by motorists to refuell hydrogen fuel cell cars such as the Toyota Mirai, Hyundai Nexo andHonda Clarity.

Such cars use a fuel cell to convert hydrogen into electricity, which is then used to turn the wheels. The only emission from this process is pure, drinkable water, making hydrogen fuel cell cars ‘zero emission’ and among the very cleanest on the road.

This is the second hydrogen pump installed by Shell at one of its motorway service stations, but is the first to be among the fossil fuel pumps under the main canopy. At its other site, at Cobham services on the M25, the hydrogen pump is slightly separate from the main refuelling area.

Hydrogen on the M25 brings Britain closer to zero-carbon motoring – we're first to try the new pump

ITM Power CEO Dr. Graham Cooley said: “ITM Power is pleased to open this new hydrogen station in Beaconsfield which is the first to sit on the main forecourt, alongside the petrol and diesel pumps.

“This shows a big step forward in offering Shell customers a clean, green fuel, which is generated on-site, eliminating fuel deliveries.

“We look forward to working alongside Shell to deploy further stations and grow the hydrogen refuelling infrastructure in the UK.”

“We’re delighted to be opening a new refuelling site at Shell Beaconsfield, demonstrating our ongoing commitment to hydrogen as a vital part of the UK’s future transport system,” said Mike Copson, hydrogen business development manager at Shell.

“Bringing hydrogen under the canopy for the first time is a fantastic step towards making it a convenient and viable fuel choice for UK drivers.”

Hydrogen cars are quick to refuel, making them significantly more practical than battery-electric cars for many users CREDIT: ED ROBINSON 

The facility at Beaconsfield can generate hydrogen on-site using water and electricity to make hydrogen gas. This is compressed and can be pumped into cars very quickly; a refuelling time of a couple of minutes is one key advantage of hydrogen fuel cell cars over battery-electric vehicles, which can take hours to be fully charged.

Other benefits include the range, which is significantly better than that of electric cars, as well as the potential ability to generate hydrogen through clean, renewable electrolysis. But there are still barriers that prevent wider uptake among British motorists.

“From a consumer point of view, the two main sticking points are the limited locations where you can refuel and the initial price of the car,” says Mat Watson from independent car buying site Carwow.

“The technology is still in its infancy and it’s more expensive to produce the cars. They require a secure high-pressure fuel tank to store the hydrogen, a fuel cell to convert it into electricity and a battery pack to provide some energy storage, though this is much smaller than the battery packs used for a pure electric car.

“It could be argued that the investment in electric technology has been a bit of a red herring. The infrastructure to support an electric future it is still years away and arguably that time could have been spent in preparing us for a future of carbon neutral, hydrogen powered vehicles.”

Hydrogen | is H2 the fuel of the future?

The Department for Transport has recently released £8.8 million to improve access to hydrogen infrastructure in Britain. The winning consortium, managed by Element Energy and including Shell, ITM Power and car manufacturers Hyundai, Honda and Toyota, will support the growth of refuelling networks in the UK.

Oliver Bishop, General Manager of Hydrogen at Shell, said: “Hydrogen has the potential to become a significant part of the transport mix in a low-carbon future. Central to this success is collaboration between the Government, energy companies, OEMs and technology experts to create the infrastructure to make access to new fuel options viable.

“At Shell, we are delighted to be part of the latest infrastructure funding effort, and to help drive forward the UK’s hydrogen refuelling network.”

City of Oakland Provides Solar EV Charging to Employees

Envision Solar International, Inc., a renewably energized EV charging, outdoor media and energy security products company, announced that the City of Oakland, California has recently deployed its EV ARC products, equipped with ChargePoint chargers, to provide emissions free EV charging and emergency power to the city's public works department and emergency response services.

The City of Oakland is committed to sustainable operations overall as well as making their fleet as green as possible. 43% of the City's annual 700,000 gallons of fuel consumed is a low carbon or renewable alternative fuel. The City of Oakland has 26 EVs today and intends to increase that number going forward. As part of the City's ongoing efforts to reduce its carbon footprint and provide clean and reliable power, it intends to use solar as the cleanest fuel available for the City's green fleet and as a potential source of backup power to add resiliency in the event of a power outage or lost access to other fuels.

Invented and manufactured in California, the EV ARC fits inside a parking space, without reducing available parking, and generates enough clean solar electricity to power up to 225 miles of EV driving in a day. The system's solar electrical generation is enhanced by EnvisionTrak, which causes the array to follow the sun, generating up to 25% more electricity than a fixed array. The energy is stored in the EV ARC product's energy storage for charging day or night, and to provide emergency power during grid failure. Because the EV ARC product requires no trenching, foundations or installation work of any kind, it is deployed in minutes and can be moved to a new location with ease.

Students at Okanagan College create solar-powered table to charge cellphones

​Students at Okanagan College unveiled an outdoor table that doubles as a charging station at Okanagan College's Kelowna campus this week.

The table is the first creation by Project ReCharge - an initiative aiming to integrate solar technology with everyday objects.

The idea came when business students Nick Gallant and Cooper Simson joined with civil engineering student Josh Wiebe to find ways to charge their cellphones while enjoying the outdoors.

"A few of us had wanted to do something with solar energy," said Gallant.

"We were outside and wanted to charge our phones and work at the same time."

They enlisted the help of three more engineering students on campus to design and perfect their idea.

The group has been given the go-ahead to install similar tables at the college's Penticton, Vernon and Salmon Arm campuses.

The team will be heading to Calgary on March 1 to compete with against twelve other regional finalists and could win a spot in the national Scotiabank EcoLiving Green Challenge, which asks student teams to showcase environmentally sustainable business ideas.

They will also be competing for a $20,000 grant that will allow them to expand and get their product to market.

"We're looking at restaurants and schools and bars and areas like that, that already have existing tables but they would like to allow customers to charge their phone at the same time," said Gallant.

​

This solar-powered sidewalk can charge an electric vehicle

As efficiency and durability in solar panels improves, we're seeing them installed in more and more creative places. Budapest, Hungary-based startup Platio has installed solar pavers on a sidewalk, paired with a charging station for electric cars.

Budapest - Platio first hit the headlines in July 2017 when it was announced the company had designed a modular energy-harvesting paving system made withrecycled plastic. A mere two months later, Platio had developed projects in Hungary, Sweden, and Kazakhstan.

Not only is this company making use of recycled plastic, but it has developed an outdoor, energy producing modular paving system that can also be equipped with information technological functions.

One of the company's first projects can be found at Városháza Park, in Budapest. Platio installed their solar system on a wooden bench. Park-goers can use the "Smart bench" to charge their phones or tablets using either a USB cord or QI wireless. Local design studio Hello Wood installed the park’s wavy wooden benches, Platio founder Miklós Ilyés told Inhabitat.

Platio's smart bench car charge your phone or tablet.

Platio

Platio Solar-Powered sidewalk

Measuring 4.7 square meters, or about 50 square feet, the 720 Wp system of Platio Solar Pavers is made up of 40 units and is located at a charging station for electric vehicles on the campus of real estate company Prologis.

Prologis focuses on green development solutions, so they were the perfect test-site for the solar sidewalk. The addition next to the charging stations was practical, and there is the added bonus of the energy generated in the panels being rerouted from the sidewalk to help power the office building next to it when the charging stations are not being used.

The sidewalks can be easily integrated into the environment, causing no disturbance to the way people use sidewalks. In a statement, Platio said they hoped “to demonstrate that by turning energy absorbing paved areas into huge walkable solar arrays, energy production can be achieved at a large scale without taking up useful space or altering the cityscape.”

The solar sidewalk can be easily integrated into the environment.

Platio

“It is important for us to find key partners who support innovative technologies and can give us a chance to try new fields of applications,” Miklós Illyés, co-founder of Platio, said in a Prologis blog post.“With the help of Prologis, we managed to install our first solution for EV charging stations, which is a significant milestone for us and our mission to contribute to e-mobility.”

Platio has bigger dreams for solar sidewalks

Obviously, when the solar sidewalk is in public areas, the energy generated from the sun can be used to provide the juice needed for running street lights or people can easily charge their mobile devices at hubs and benches while waiting at bus stops or cab stands.

Besides public lighting, traffic control systems and other energy consuming street contrivances can be powered independently from the grid using energy generated by the sidewalks, says Platio. And unlike other in-pavement integrated renewable energy technologies, Platio is easy to install and maintain, since it does not require a special foundation and also it is modularly upgradeable with several further smart functions.

Special coatings developed by Platio can prevent mishaps during bad weather.

Platio

And the startup also had durability and safety in mind when they developed their product. It would take a massive drop of 10 tons to even create a crack in the sidewalk, and because of the way it is installed, it is protected from thievery. The sidewalk requires special tools to raise, preventing theft.

Platio has also developed various slip protections, based on the climate conditions. For example, an aluminum oxide coating provides plenty of friction in both hot and cold areas. A clear hydrophobic polymer can also be used to prevent water from collecting between a person's shoes and the sidewalk surface, preventing slipping.

At the present time, solar sidewalks are not practical for large-scale energy solutions, yet there is a definite need for this technology, and it will be interesting to see where it leads.

Como hacer una instalación de paneles solares de bajo costo

It shows how this system installed a small photovoltaic panels to supply direct or alternating current inverter implemented. Save money by using solar energy. you can have it running for 10 hours, a laptop, a television, charge their phones or tablet and use it to illuminate overnight using LED bulbs.

Se muestra como esta instalado un pequeño sistema de paneles foto-voltaicos para alimentar corriente continua directa o alterna implementado inversor. Ahorre dinero utilizando energía solar. usted puede tener funcionando durante 10 horas un laptop, un televisor, cargar sus celulares o tableta y utilícelo también para iluminar durante toda la noche usando focos led.