Quote:
Originally Posted by edsuski
Can someone help me understand the Hydrogen Fuel Cell model?
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Water is NOT required for hydrogen production, only a compound containing hydrogen. Water is not typically used for producing hydrogen in the US today.
A significant portion of the hydrogen produced in the US today is a byproduct of oil refining (how ironic).
The current cost of a kilogram of hydrogen is somewhere in the $5-6/kg range (current prices are tough to come by). A kg of hydrogen has approximately the same energy as a gallon of gas. But where a gas engine is maybe 25% efficient, a fuel cell is more like 50% efficient. So that $5-6/kg of hydrogen is like $2.50-3.00/gallon of gas equivalent.
For a small fleet and relatively small geographic area (like LA) the logistics aren't too bad.