Hydrogen as a fuel for today and tomorrow: expectations for advanced hydrogen storage materials/systems research

Abstract

History shows that the evolution of vehicles is promoted by several environmental restraints very similar to the evolution of life. The latest environmental strain is sustainability. Transport vehicles are now facing again the need to advance to use sustainable fuels such as hydrogen. Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are being prepared for commercialization in 2015. Despite intensive research by the world’s scientists and engineers and recent advances in our understanding of hydrogen behavior in materials, the only engineering phase technology which will be available for 2015 is high pressure storage. Thus industry has decided to implement the high pressure tank storage system. However the necessity of smart hydrogen storage is not decreasing but rather increasing because high market penetration of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles is expected from around 2025 onward. In order to bring more vehicles onto the market, cheaper and more compact hydrogen storage is inevitable. The year 2025 seems a long way away but considering the field tests and large scale preparation required, there is little time available for research. Finding smart materials within the next 5 years is very important to the success of fuel cells towards a low carbon sustainable world.