Toyota to Supply Fuel Cell Modules for Zero-emission Train Project
Written by AZoCleantechApr 9 2021
Toyota is supporting a project investigating the possibility of using hydrogen as a zero-emission fuel for rail travel. Through its membership of the European FCH2RAIL consortium, it is supplying its new hydrogen fuel cell module for use in a prototype train.
Toyota fuel cell module for zero-emission train project. Image Credit: Toyota
Toyota is working with consortium partners from Belgium, Germany, Spain and Portugal to develop the prototype. At the heart of the project is a hybrid, bi-modal drive system that combines the electrical power supply from an overhead line with a fuel cell hybrid power pack (consisting of hydrogen fuel cells and batteries) that works independently of the overhead line. If successful, it could prove a valuable alternative to the diesel-powered trains still in service across Europe.
Hydrogen fuel cell rail project takes off in Europe
The EU project FCH2RAIL (Fuel Cell Hybrid Power Pack for Rail Applications) with partners from Belgium, Germany, Spain and Portugal is developing and testing a new zero-emission train prototype. Key to the idea is a combination of electricity from overhead wires with a fuel cell power pack.
FCH2RAIL wants to offer an alternative to conventional diesel locomotives and trains that have to cross the sections without an overhead line. At the heart of the project is what the consortium calls “a hybrid bimodal propulsion system” that combines power from the overhead lines with a “fuel cell hybrid power pack”. The latter comprises hydrogen fuel cells and batteries. The concept: if energy is available from the overhead lines, the train uses it; if there is no overhead line, the energy comes from the fuel cell and battery system. Concrete performance data have not yet been published.