Fuel Cell Motor Vehicles
Fuel cells on track for series production
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Fuel-cell
technology is currently regarded as the alternative drive system offering
the best prospects for the future. When the Daimler-Benz Research department
unveiled the world's first fully operational fuel-cell-powered vehicle back
in 1991, it was praised as a pioneering advance. Since then, a large team of
development engineers from an array of specialist fields have been working
together in the state-of-the-art "Fuel Cell Project House" to bring the
fuel-cell technology up to series-production standard. |
60 F-Cell A-Class cars enter practical testing
On October 7, 2002,
DaimlerChrysler unveiled the Mercedes-Benz
"F-Cell" A-Class, the world´s first small-scale series of 60 fuel-cell-powered
cars. These vehicles with fuel cell drive systems no longer bear the
Mercedes-Benz research badge NECAR (New Electric Car). Starting in 2003, they
will instead be tested out in small fleets under everyday conditions by
customers in Europe, the U.S.A., Japan and Singapore under the terms of
state-backed international alliance agreements, to push forwards the development
of this technology within the framework of day-to-day operation and extensive
field testing.
The Mercedes-Benz A-Class "F-Cell" marks a further milestone in the car
industry´s ongoing quest to produce emission-free vehicles which are no longer
dependent on fossil fuels.
World's Most Extensive Testing in Daily Use
After its fuel cell engines had passed the stage of being purely research in 2002, DaimlerChrysler then started the worldwide testing of fuel cell vehicles in daily use in 2003 with passenger vehicles, transporters and city buses. Both drivers and technicians send in detailed reports about their day-to-day experiences driving the 100 fuel cell vehicles under different conditions worldwide. The fleet of 60 passenger cars and 33 buses provides a great deal of valuable information to assist in the further development of this technology of the future. The tests are not only to help optimize both vehicles and component parts, but also to solve the questions of how to build up a suitable infrastructure and the degree of acceptance hydrogen technology has among drivers and passengers. The company´s 180 registered patents in the fuel cell technology sector just go to show the extent of its pioneering achievements.
The F-Cell A-Class with a range of 150 KM
The entire fuel cell drive
system for the Fuel-Cell is fitted in the sandwich floor construction of the
long-wheelbase Mercedes-Benz A-Class
“F-Cell”. The two tanks contain enough fuel – hydrogen compressed to 350 bar
– to keep the F-Cell going for 150 kilometers. Consumption equates to 4.2 liters
per 100 kilometers in an equivalent diesel-powered car. The electric motor,
which generates 65 kW/88 hp, accelerates the A-Class from 0 to 100
kilometers per hour in 16 seconds and on to a maximum speed of 140 km/h –
enough energy to meet the challenge of day-to-day conditions, in other words.
The car’s performance is, of course, coupled with the benefits of
zero-emission operation and low noise levels, making the Mercedes-Benz
A-Class F-Cell particularly well-suited to urban use – good news for the driver,
local residents and the environment.
940,000 KM of Experience Gained with Fuel Cell Buses
Since 2003, 30 Mercedes-Benz
Citaro city buses with fuel cell engines have been in regular service on the
streets of ten European cities. Another three buses are being driven round
Perth, Australia and in the near future they will also be tested in Peking,
China. By mid 2005, the buses, which have to prove their reliability in very
varied climates, had been driven more than 940,000 kilometers and carried over
three million passengers.
The fuel cell buses are under continuous observation and at the end of every
shift they are given a very detailed inspection and the data collected by the
sensor of the bus electronics while it is being driven is read out and
transferred electronically to those engineers and technicians responsible on the
spot as well as to DaimlerChrysler Headquarters in Germany. This means that all
those involved in the project receive a daily update of the data on the
operating behavior of all the buses in the cities participating in the test. As
a result, any weakness can be recognized immediately and be corrected as the
case may be.