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Hydrogen has a few issues of its own which are slowly, but surely tipping the scales in favour of BEVs, namely: 1. The fuel is relatively expensive and will be

by Tade0 7y ago

Hydrogen has a few issues of its own which are slowly, but surely tipping the scales in favour of BEVs, namely: 1. The fuel is relatively expensive and will be for the foreseeable future. 2. Likewise the fueling stations. 3. Not to mention the vehicles themselves - this is true for BEVs as well, but while it's possible to make a cheap BEV, the same doesn't hold for hydrogen cars due to the cost of tanks, pumps and plumbing. 4. A hydrogen station's failure mode is a giant fireball. Sure, hydrogen wins on charging time now, but that advantage is diminishing. Meanwhile battery tech is getting both better and cheaper. Who knows, perhaps the next gen of EVs, arriving around 2025 will have ranges comparable to what a normal human being can stay behind the wheel without rest?

deleted 7y ago
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AmericanChopper 7y ago
Due to the current efficiency of electrolysis, hydrogen could easily become less expensive than gas. Which is already quite cheap. BEVs were equally expensive when they first came onto the market. There’s no reason to think hydrogen cars won’t be able to match them on price in the future. A gas stations failure mode is also a giant fireball, so is a BEV and ICE cars failure mode. We seem to be doing fine despite that. I’m not predicting that hydrogen cars are going to replace BEVs. Just that they obviously have the potential to do so, that they better align with the existing value propositions of ICE cars, and that to say the future is 100% confirmed BEV is simply wrong.
- Tade0 7y ago
  > Due to the current efficiency of electrolysis, hydrogen could easily become less expensive than gas. I did the math and while it's possible, it's still not the case today. Even worse - hydrogen is more expensive per mile driven. > There’s no reason to think hydrogen cars won’t be able to match them on price in the future. I'll give you one then: expensive parts in the form of platinum catalysts and generally higher complexity, since all hydrogen cars which don't rely on combustion of hydrogen are actually hydrogen-electric hybrids with a buffer battery - something necessary due to the low power density of fuel cells. > A gas stations failure mode is also a giant fireball But would be rarer if we had enough cases to compare. Petrol being a fluid doesn't combust as easily - its NFPA flammability rating is 3, while hydrogen's is 4. Sure, natural gas is also highly flammable, but has less than 40% of the energy density.

by Tade0 7y ago

deleted 7y ago

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AmericanChopper 7y ago

Due to the current efficiency of electrolysis, hydrogen could easily become less expensive than gas. Which is already quite cheap. BEVs were equally expensive when they first came onto the market. There’s no reason to think hydrogen cars won’t be able to match them on price in the future. A gas stations failure mode is also a giant fireball, so is a BEV and ICE cars failure mode. We seem to be doing fine despite that. I’m not predicting that hydrogen cars are going to replace BEVs. Just that they obviously have the potential to do so, that they better align with the existing value propositions of ICE cars, and that to say the future is 100% confirmed BEV is simply wrong.

Tade0 7y ago
> Due to the current efficiency of electrolysis, hydrogen could easily become less expensive than gas. I did the math and while it's possible, it's still not the case today. Even worse - hydrogen is more expensive per mile driven. > There’s no reason to think hydrogen cars won’t be able to match them on price in the future. I'll give you one then: expensive parts in the form of platinum catalysts and generally higher complexity, since all hydrogen cars which don't rely on combustion of hydrogen are actually hydrogen-electric hybrids with a buffer battery - something necessary due to the low power density of fuel cells. > A gas stations failure mode is also a giant fireball But would be rarer if we had enough cases to compare. Petrol being a fluid doesn't combust as easily - its NFPA flammability rating is 3, while hydrogen's is 4. Sure, natural gas is also highly flammable, but has less than 40% of the energy density.