Life cycle assessment of a polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cell system for passenger vehicles

Abstract

In moving towards a more sustainable society, hydrogen fueled polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) fuel cell technology is seen as a great opportunity to reduce the environmental impact of the transport sector.However, decision makers have the challenge of understanding the real environmental consequences of producing fuel cell vehicles (FCVs) compared to alternative green cars, such as battery electric vehicles (BEVs) and more conventional internal combustion engine vehicles (ICEVs). In this work, we presented a comprehensive life cycle assessment (LCA) of a FCV focused on its manufacturing phase and compared with the production of a BEV and an ICEV. For the manufacturing phase, the FCV inventories started from the catalyst layer to the glider, including the hydrogen tank. A sensitivity analysis on some of the key components of the fuel cell stack and the FC system (such as balance-of-plant and hydrogen tank) was carried out to account for different assumptions on materials and inventory models. The production process of the fuel cell vehicle showed a higher environmental impact compared to the production of the other two vehicles power sources. This is mainly due to the hydrogen tank and the fuel cell stack. However, by combining the results of the sensitivity analysis for each component -a best-case scenario showed that there is the potential for a 25% reduction in the climate change impact category for the FCV compared to a baseline FCV scenario. Reducing the environmental impact associated with the manufacture of fuel cell vehicles represents an important challenge. The entire life cycle has also been considered and the manufacturing, use and disposal of FCV, electric vehicle and conventional diesel vehicle were compared. Overall, the ICEV showed the highest GWP and this was mainly due to the use phase and the fossil carbon emissions associated to the use of diesel.

Case Studies of Energy Storage with Fuel Cells and Batteries for Stationary and Mobile Applications

“…The impact of platinum group metals, although their small amount, lies mainly in their extraction process, as suggested in previous studies [56,57] and confirmed by the impacts flowchart shown in Figure 11.…”

“…The impact of platinum group metals, although their small amount, lies mainly in their extraction process, as suggested in previous studies [56,57] and confirmed by the impacts flowchart shown in Figure 11. As can be seen in Figures 9 and 10, for both hydrogen-based systems, a significant impact is given by the gas tanks (62% for the stationary system and 49% for the mobile one).…”

CO2‐Mediated H2 Storage‐Release with Nanostructured Catalysts: Recent Progresses, Challenges, and Perspectives

“…[4] The requirements that materials should meet in order to be good candidates as H 2 storage and release media can be generally described as follows. For example, a few years ago, the Department of Energy (DOE) in the United States (US) set up the following requirement for hydrogen storage materials for on-board implementation: a material should have a minimum gravimetric hydrogen density of 1.5 kWh kg −1 (4.5 wt% hydrogen, system-based) to be a good candidate as on-board H 2 -storage medium for full-fleet, light-duty vehicles in the US by the year 2020.…”

“…In the case of sorbent materials, research efforts should continue around the development of highly porous materials with optimized pore size, high pore volume and large specific surface area to achieve the highest possible volumetric and gravimetric hydrogen storage capacities. [4] From a practical point of view, formate/bicarbonate and even FA/formate are more advantageous as energy storage systems than FA/CO 2 , because the spent fuels, i.e., bicarbonate and formate, respectively, are not gases or can exit in solution at ambient condition, and are thus easier to manage. Catalysts that allow the regeneration or reproduction of the chemical hydrides from the spent fuels are also equally needed.…”

“…One issue that complicates this analysis for some hydrogen storage systems is the fact that the spent fuels exist in gaseous forms under ambient condition and are thus relatively difficult to handle. [4] This also highlights how the performance of the catalyst can dictate the quantity of catalyst and volume of reactor needed for the dehydrogenation reaction for mobile applications. Alternatively, research work on catalysts for formate/bicarbonate solutions, where the fuel and spent fuel can both exist in liquid forms, and are thus easier to handle during recyclable H 2 storage-release, should be carried out.…”