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The world's first hydrogen-powered train goes into service
Hydrail technology—trains that use hydrogen fuel to power their motors—has become a reality: the first hydrogen-powered trains have just entered service in Germany. Hydrogen trains are equipped with fuel cells which produce electricity through combining hydrogen with oxygen. This process leaves steam and water as its only by-products; carbon emissions are zero. With the urgent need to ban the burning of fossil fuels globally, high-emission diesel trains are being phased out. Hydrail is far cheaper than electrifying an entire rail network, it is quiet and leaves no carbon footprint. It is likely to become the best option for rail transport in the 21st century.
Hydrogen as a fuel
Hydrogen is an extremely common element, found in water. It can be separated from water by electrolysis, but this process itself involves the use of electricity. Once isolated, hydrogen can serve as a form of fuel, which can generate electricity. This is then fed into a electric motor to propel a vehicle. It is a way of "storing" energy onboard a vehicle where it is too expensive, or impracticable, to connect it directly to an electricity supply.
The development of lighter and more efficient fuel cells (see below) has made it possible for hydrogen-powered vehicles to become viable. At the same time, pressure to cut carbon emissions from burning fossil fuels has made the use of hydrogen as a fuel, which has zero emissions, much more attractive—despite diesel fuel being far cheaper.
Coradia iLint
The Alstom Coradia iLint, the world's first hydrogen-powered passenger train to go into service, was first announced in 2016. It is able to reach 140 km/h (87 mph) and travel up to 1000 kilometres (600 miles) on a full tank of hydrogen—similar to the range of diesel trains. In September 2018, the Coradia iLint started running on the Buxtehude-Bremervörde-Bremerhaven-Cuxhaven line in Lower Saxony, Germany. A mobile hydrogen filling station refuels the trains.
The iLint's wheels are driven by an electric motor in the chassis. There is a lithium-ion battery alongside it, which maintains a constant flow of power. The hydrogen storage tanks are located above the cab, while the fuel cell is in the roof in the middle of the train.
What is a fuel cell?
A key technology of any vehicle driven by hydrogen is the fuel cell. This is a device that generates electricity through a chemical reaction. Every fuel cell has two electrodes: an anode, which has a positive charge, and a cathode, which has a negative charge. The reactions that produce electricity take place at the electrodes. The fuel cell also contains an electrolyte, a liquid which carries electrically charged particles from one electrode to the other, and a platinum catalyst, which speeds up the reactions at the electrodes. The electrolyte contains a membrane to keep the oxygen and hydrogen apart, and only permits the passage of certain types of ions.
Hydrogen atoms enter the fuel cell at the anode where a chemical reaction (assisted by a catalyst) strips them of their electrons. The hydrogen atoms are now "ionized" and carry a positive electrical charge. They travel through the electrolyte membrane to the cathode. Here they are rejoined by the negatively charged electrons, which have travelled round an external electrical circuit to give electricity. They also combine with oxygen atoms, which have entered the fuel cell at the cathode. The hydrogen ions, electrons and oxygen all react together to form water (H2O), which drains from the cell. Heat is another by-product of the reaction.
As long as a fuel cell is supplied with hydrogen and oxygen, it will generate electricity. However, each cell produces only a tiny amount of current, so many cells are stuck together in what are known as "stacks".