Transit buses

Average Energy Intensity and Occupancy Rates for U.S. Public Transit Buses and Passenger Automobiles, 1970-1997. SOURCE Davis, 1999. 

Fuel cell technology probably offers a new emerging area for polyheterocyclic polymers as membranes. Fuel cells are interesting in transport applications and are now being evaluated in Chicago in transit buses with a 275-hp engine working with three 13 kW Ballard fuel cell stacks. 

In 1994 and 1995, H-Power (Belleville, New Jersey) headed a team that built three PAFC/battery hybrid transit buses (24,25). These 9 meter (30 foot), 25 seat (with space for two wheel chairs) buses used a 50 kW fuel cell and a 100 kW, 180 amp-hour nickel cadmium battery. 

Recently, the major activity in transportation fuel cell development has focused on the polymer electrolyte fuel cell (PEFC). In 1993, Ballard Power Systems (Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada) demonstrated a 10 m (32 foot) light-duty transit bus with a 120 kW fuel cell system, followed by a 200 kW, 12 meter (40 foot) heavy-duty transit bus in 1995 (26). These buses use no traction batteries. They operate on compressed hydrogen as the on-board fuel. In 1997, Ballard provided 205 kW (275 HP) PEFC units for a small fleet of hydrogen-fueled, full-size transit buses for demonstrations in Chicago, Illinois, and Vancouver, British Columbia. Working... 

There has been an accelerated interest in polymer electrolyte fuel cells within the last few years, which has led to improvements in both cost and performance. Development has reached the point where motive power applications appear achievable at an acceptable cost for commercial markets. Noticeable accomplishments in the technology, which have been published, have been made at Ballard Power Systems. PEFC operation at ambient pressure has been validated for over 25,000 hours with a six-cell stack without forced air flow, humidification, or active cooling (17). Complete fuel cell systems have been demonstrated for a number of transportation applications including public transit buses and passenger automobiles. Recent development has focused on cost reduction and high volume manufacture for the catalyst, membranes, and bipolar plates. 

California has started a Fuel Cell Partnership with oil companies, automakers and fuel cell companies. They hope to have 50 fuel cell vehicles, both passenger cars and transit buses, on the... 

The two fuel vehicles began operation late in the summer of 2007. Users maintain logs that document vehicle performance, and tests are ongoing to evaluate the operational experience and the refueling station. Other NREL evaluation projects involve transit buses powered by fuel cell hybrids in Oakland, California, Thousand Palms, California, and Hartford, Connecticut. 

The EPA finalized regulations, requiring all transit buses to install emissions control hardware when their engines are rebuilt, on April 21,1993, to take effect January 1,1993, in all metropolitan areas with 1980 populations of 750.000 or more. 

Figure 4-8 shows an LNG refueling facility designed for refueling LNG transit buses. This facility includes a dispenser, kiosk, canopy, methane detection system, fire suppression system, and trailer-mounted LNG storage tank. In this system, LNG is pumped from the storage tank to the dispenser and then on to the bus. A trailer-mounted tank was chosen for this application since a permanent tank was not desired. 

Addressing the Fire Hazards of Alternative Fuels for Public Transit Buses Industrial Fire Safety (Part 1, September/October 1993 Part 2, January/ February 1994)... 

Hydrogen penetration in the transportation sector will likely be led by fleet vehicles, i.e., transit buses, courier, delivery, and light-duty utility vehicles that refuel at home base. Niche applications could also play a strategic role in developing hydrogen infrastructures and energy systems. Such end-use applications include forklifts and off-road vehicles. 

Unfortunately, consumers are reluctant to accept obvious trade-offs even when the private system can justify investments in AFVs and alternative fuel refueling infrastructure. Most vehicle consumers want it all. They want a low emissions vehicle, but insist that it be powerful as well. They want their large, heavy vehicle to be fuel efficient. They won t give up trunk space for a large gaseous fuel tank. They don t want to refuel on the opposite side of town, or even the opposite side of the street, even if that s where the alternative fuel is located. They want the reduced emissions and low noise of alternative fuel transit buses, but they also want low fares. 

CNG) has a much higher energy content per unit volume and is of practical use in vehicular applications. While in the U.S.A. uses of CNG have been largely limited to municipal transit buses and fleet applications, in other countries, in particular New Zealand, CNG has gained wide acceptance as an automobile fuel. In Table 5, comparative values of the energy content of various fuels are provided. 

As the new century began, early prototypes of fuel cell transit buses were being tested in North America and in Europe. Development of the internal-combustion-engine buses operating on hydrogen was proceeding too. 

We will look at passenger cars, class 1 and 2 light-duty trucks and SUVs, class 3-8 trucks, recreational vehicles, transit buses, and specialized vehicle applications. Military apphcations are not part of the current scope of woik. 

The Department of Energy supports fuel cell demonstration programs all over the United States. "Fuel cell vehicle demonstrations are currently underway in the United States, with federal, state, and local government entities partnering with industry. Most of these demonstration projects are evaluating the performance of cars, light-duty trucks, and transit buses." ... 

Dynatek Industries manufactures cylinders for CNG powered vehicles using carbon fiber/ glass composite, offering great savings for transit buses. They are used for the Ford Focus Fuel-Cell Vehicle (FCV). 

Deployment Trends for Electric Drive in Transit Buses.178... 

Examples of HEB/EB Transit Buses with LIB-Based Rechargeable... 

Overview of Transit Buses with Lithium-Ion Batteries.183... 

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