Two articles came across my desk on Monday from very different sources about fuel cells.  One was published in Business Spectator and the other in Science Daily.

Science Daily reported on a 2 year pilot program soon to be undertaken in Texas, California and New York where the refrigeration units of frozen food delivery vans will be run by fuel cells, replacing the diesel engines that now drive the compressors.

The second article I read concerned  development of fuel cells making them cheaper and more efficient.  The article suggested that in the future fuel cells could replace lithium ion batteries in electric vehicles to store energy.  They could also be used with a battery to provide a long range, rapid charging electric vehicle.  The batteries are also being developed for improved use in homes and businesses.

What is a fuel cell?

In a fuel cell electricity is generated by a chemical reaction when hydrogen combines with oxygen from the air producing electricity, heat and water.

There are a few advantages in using hydrogen fuel cells, include less pollution and emissions than those generated in a petrol or diesel engine. They are also much quieter and because the electricity is generated by a chemical reaction rather than by combustion, fuel is used more efficiently.  It is estimated that in the case of the refrigerated trucks, users could save about 37 litres of diesel per day per truck.

Fuel cells are being used  more frequently in buildings and in vehicles.  Indirect benefits of an increasing use of hydrogen fuel cells include  job creation in the energy sector, further research and development of the technology and lowering costs.

There are also downsides to hydrogen fuel cells.  At the moment the technology is more expensive than traditional alternatives.  Although hydrogen is everywhere,  in nature it is found bound to other molecules such as oxygen (to form water) or carbon (to form methane).  Because hydrogen does not commonly occur on its own, it needs to be separated from the water or methane molecules and stored as hydrogen for use as a fuel. This means that energy (often fossil fuels) is needed to release the hydrogen- and more energy is used up than is created when the hydrogen is used to create energy later on.   In the case of the refrigerated trucks, natural gas is used.  But there is no mention of the amount of natural gas used to make the hydrogen.

So from a sustainability and greenhouse gas perspective, hydrogen fuel cells, like electric cars, still generally  rely on fossil fuels  and generate greenhouse gases.  There may be fewer emissions and pollutants in the creation of hydrogen, but the ideal is to use solar or another renewable energy source to create the hydrogen that is stored and used in the fuel cell when needed.

From a consumer and trade practices perspective, a business claiming that their fuel cells are producing  clean or green energy or are good for the environment must be able to prove this and must qualify their claims  if the hydrogen is produced using fossil fuels.  They must not mislead consumers into thinking that there are no emissions when emissions are a by- product of hydrogen production.