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Challenges of hydrogen
I was interested to read in the June issue both David Jenkins’ article on hybrid buses and the news that Wrightbus has scored some notable successes in selling hydrogen buses to Germany. Congratulations to Wrightbus.
However, it should be noted that hydrogen fuel cell buses are essentially another version of the series hybrid, the major difference being that the internal combustion engine and generator have been replaced by a fuel cell or cells plus a fuel storage system. They are likely to be more complicated and expensive to maintain and operate than a battery bus, requiring a mixture of trade skills. And of course, they still have batteries.
One thing that may not be generally realised is that, just like batteries, hydrogen fuel cells have a finite life. Information available seems to suggest a life of around si…
