London’s famous black cabs to use hydrogen fuel cells by 2012

The idea is to use hydrogen-powered fuel cells in order to reduce CO₂ emissions from transport and the technology will be tested by London’s Cabs hopefully in time of the 2012 Olympics.

The governmental funded programme Technology Strategy Board with its innovative development technologies could contribute to reaching UK targets on climate change and could encourage British companies to collaborate in the commercialization of hydrogen technologies. As part of this programme, the first few hydrogen taxis were financed and Lotus is already building them at their Norfolk headquarters.

PHOTO: Alenka Žumbar

Hydrogen fuel cell is made by Intelligent Energy and it is an electrochemical device that converts hydrogen fuel directly into electricity and heat without combustion and feeds it to a battery pack under the floor of the taxi’s passenger area. Then, the batteries drive motors in the wheels.

New hydrogen powered taxis can reach a speed of up to 81mph, accelerate to 60 mph in 14 seconds and go approximately 250 miles on a full tank of hydrogen.

Hydrogen fuel cell can be more than twice as efficient as an internal combustion engine, approximately 60 per cent compared to about 30 per cent.

Extraordinarily achievement is that there are no emissions and that it is easy to fill up the tank on a number of planned hydrogen stations around London. Filling stations could use renewable energies like solar or wind power to separate hydrogen and oxygen from water.

Also, hydrogen can be produced through reformation of a range of hydrocarbon-based feedstock such as natural gas, propane, methanol butane or propane and it can be derived from sustainable, carbon-neutral sources of methane such as biomass or land-fill gas.

According to London's Deputy Mayor Kit Malthouse, there will be around 20 to 50 operational taxies by the 2012 Olympics and around 150 hydrogen-powered buses.