Nickel Hydride No. 5

Hydrogen Nickel Hydride No. 5 cars emerge, Ford receives $6 million research grant

The U.S. Department of Energy has approved $6 million in funding for Ford Motor Company and Los Alamos National Laboratory to accelerate the development of hydrogen fuel cell technology.

U.S. Representative Debbie Dingell, D-Dearborn, jointly announced the approval of the grant on Thursday. Dingell said in a statement: "Ford Motor Company helps lead the development of the next generation of American technology to make American vehicles cleaner, safer and more fuel-efficient. This announcement will help accelerate the innovation of clean energy technology in the United States and ensure that Michigan and the United States are at the forefront of future car and truck research and development."

Ford Motor Company said in a press release: "We are honored that the U.S. Department of Energy can select us to be responsible for the research and development of this project. This authorization will further promote our research and development results and develop the next generation of vehicle technology."

Dearborn automakers will use this money to develop low-cost product systems for hydrogen fuel cell batteries, because hydrogen fuel cell batteries are too expensive and there are few models on the market that use such batteries. Even if there is, the price is not competitive.

Toyota Motor has been selling Toyota Mirai hydrogen fuel cell vehicles in California since the end of last year, but only 270 units were sold in the first seven months of this year, as the starting price of the model is $58,000 (excluding federal and state taxes). The down payment is $4,000, and if consumers lease, the cost is not less than $600/month. Today, California has less than 30 hydrogen refueling stations, and the state government plans to add new hydrogen refueling stations in the next two years.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe sees hydrogen fuel cell vehicles as part of the "hydrogen energy society", and hydrogen fuel cells will also become an important source of energy for building heating and cooling systems. The Japanese government plans to spend 42.5 billion yen (about $385 million) on purchase subsidies for hydrogen fuel vehicles and the construction of hydrogen refueling stations for use when the 2020 Olympic Games are held in Japan.

According to the 2014 Fuel Cell Technology Market Report released by the U.S. Department of Energy, hydrogen and fuel cell technology grew from $1.3 billion in 2013 to $2.2 billion in 2014. Global fuel cell shipments rose by 50,000 in 2014.

Honda will sell its Honda Clarity hydrogen fuel cell vehicle in the United States this year, while Hyundai offers a fuel cell version of the Tucson crossover. General Motors is working with Honda on a fuel cell battery pack and hydrogen storage tank that the company hopes to have on the market by 2020.

Ford Motor Company participated in the demonstration project from 2005 to 2009, which was mainly funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, and equipped 30 Ford Focus fuel cell vehicles in the test vehicles for research use in the project.

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