Secretary Perry Test Drives Hydrogen Fuel Cell Car to Commemorate National Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Day
Justin Lewis
October 18, 2017
On October 11, to commemorate National Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Day, Secretary Rick Perry drove one of the world's first commercial fuel cell electric vehicles at Department of Energy headquarters in Washington, D.C. Now commercially available, fuel cell vehicles are a part of America's transportation portfolio, bringing the country a wider range of clean transportation options.
Secretary Perry's timing for driving the fuel cell vehicle coincides with the release of a new report showing DOE-funded research resulted in over 650 U.S. patents and citing roughly 75 innovations that could potentially be commercialized by American industry in the next several years. These emerging hydrogen and fuel cell technologies have economic growth potential and can provide Americans with cleaner and more resilient energy options across a wide range of applications.
DOE has funded early-stage hydrogen and fuel cells research and development enabling a 60% reduction in fuel cell cost, a fourfold increase in durability, and an 80% cut in the cost of electrolyzers (for hydrogen production) over the past decade.
There are now nearly 3,000 commercial fuel cell cars on the road, with industry projections for roughly 40,000 by 2023. These cars can refuel in minutes, offer fuel economies of over 60 miles per gallon gasoline equivalent, and have a driving range of over 300 miles. The U.S. currently has about 30 public hydrogen fueling stations, located primarily in California, with plans for 100. At least an additional 12 are planned for deployment in the Northeast with private funding.
National Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Day, aptly chosen for the atomic weight of hydrogen (1.008), recently occurred on October 8. DOE's Fuel Cell Technologies Office and the national labs are celebrating with activities and announcements across the country throughout the month of October.
DOE's Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy supports early-stage research and development of energy efficiency, sustainable transportation, renewable energy technologies that make energy more affordable and strengthen the reliability, resilience, and security of the U.S. electric grid. The Fuel Cell Technologies Office contributes to EERE's mission by working with industry, academia, and national laboratory partners on a balanced portfolio of research in hydrogen and fuel cell technologies.