Brazilian bus moved by hydrogen starts to run in São Paulo

[IgorEliezer]

Brazilian bus moved by hydrogen starts to run in São Paulo City
News from Technological Innovation Site
08/April/2009


The first of a set of four hydrogen bus manufactured in Brazil.
 

The first Brazilian bus equipped with hydrogen fuel cells was manufactured in Caxias do Sul City and will start to run in São Paulo in this very April.

Bus without pollutant
 
The hydrogen is considered the most promising fuel when it's studied alternatives to the petroleum for use in transports. The fuel cell is a device that uses hydrogen to generate electricity. The electricity feeds the electric motors of the vehicle, just emitting water - without pollutants. 
 
The first hydrogen fuel cell bus has 12 meters length, capacity for up to 63 passengers (1 driver / 29 seating / 32 up / 1 wheelchair users), air conditioning and low floor for better comfort and the passengers' safety. 
 
The Same Formula 1 System
 
The bus electric traction is fed in a hybrid way, using the energy from rechargeable batteries and electricity provided by fuel cells. 
 
It has a regenerative system for recovery of kinetic energy during the brakings (KERS), the same system used in Formula 1's cars. 
 
The total potency of the system is 230 kW and the consumption of hydrogen should be in about 15 kilograms per 100 kilometers. The hydrogen bus autonomy is 300 km. 
 
The bus fuel - the hydrogen - will be produced in São Bernardo do Campo, through a partnership with Petrobrás. The hydrogen is produced by water electrolysis, that separates oxygen and hydrogen molecules (the text continues, but my time is over...)

Source: http://www.inovacaotecnologica.com.br/noticias/noticia.php?artigo=onibus-brasileiro-movido-a-hidrogenio-comeca-a-rodar-em-sao-paulo&id=010170090408 [original in Portuguese, the (bad) translation is mine  ]

Related News (old, I haven't found better ones)
http://blog.wired.com/cars/2006/11/brazil_gets_on_.html EN
http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=34478 EN

* Igor leaves... has a lot of duties *

[Isaac Eiland-Hall]

Here's the US version:



The good news is that it develops a lot more than a wimpy 240 Kw... The bad news is.... well, it's not very fuel efficient, and has a range of about ten feet. Oh, and it blasts anything behind it into oblivion.

/seriously, that's great to see hydrogen busses down there! Seems like progress is coming... just slowly

[VS]

I am just now doing a small project/presentation/? on all kinds of alternative automotive engines. It is supposed to be criticism. Just wikipedia + web, nothing really serious. The one thing that always resurfaces is:

Where does the energy come from?

In this case, focus on your power plants. I can guess your hydrogen is generated only at night, when the load is smaller and energy would be wasted otherwise. And you use water power a lot, so the claims that it is better seem sound...

[prissi]

In Berlin we had 10 hydrogen buses (MAN?), one demonstrator and for spare for repairs and nine for running. After two year they were widthdrawn from service because one running and nine waiting for spare parts. They regularely break after 200km ... but also from efficientcy the hydrogen technology is for fuel cells not for internal combustion engines.