Hydride Storage Tank Coupled with an Urban Concept Fuel Cell Vehicle

Abstract

This experimental work deals with the technical feasibility study, development, construction, and test of a vehicular hydrogen tank system, using an interstitial metal hydride as storage material. The tank was designed to power a fuel cell in a light prototype vehicle of the urban concept class. The room temperature hydride material is the commercial Hydralloy C5 by GfE, which was selected for its ability to absorb and desorb hydrogen in a range of pressure suitable for this application. A systematic analysis of the material in laboratory scale allows an extrapolation of the thermodynamic and reaction kinetics data. The following development of the modular tank was done according to the requirements of the prototype vehicle power train and propulsion system and led to promising intermediate results. The modular approach granted flexibility in the design, allowing both to reach carefully the design goals and to learn the different limiting factors in the sorption process. Proper heat management and suitable equipment remain key factors in order to achieve the best performance.