As part of the Western Australian Government's
commitment to working towards sustainable transport energy solutions in
Western Australia, a number of initiatives are being introduced to
encourage the development of clean fuels.
Since September 2004,
Perth has been participating in one of the first major trials of
hydrogen fuel cell buses in the world. Three Daimler Chrysler hydrogen
fuel cell buses will be trialled on normal Perth service routes for two
years.
Participation in the trial brings Western Australians
close to the global development of this exciting technology, and will
allow us to fully evaluate the potential of hydrogen and fuel cells as
one of the possible transport energy solutions of the future.
Silvia Piviali - Science Network WA
In
the photograph above the first bus is unloaded from the ship, with the
pure steam rising from its exhaust pipe visible at the rear.
Photo - WA State Government's Department of Planning and Infrastructure (DPI)
Australia
may not have signed the Kyoto protocol, as Al Gore points out in his
popular film, but Perth is doing its bit to make the bus trip to work a
clean, green ride.
Perth's most well known alternative
energy initiative was the introduction two yeas ago of three Hydrogen
Fuel Cell Buses, known as the 'EcoBus'.
Two years later, the EcoBuses have covered more than
160,000 km and carried more than 200,000 passengers along metropolitan
Perth bus routes, according to the project director at the Department
for Planning and Infrastructure, Mr Glen Head.
"Further, in only two years, these buses have prevented 272 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions," Mr Head said.
The
buses emerged after the first ever State Sustainability Strategy was
released for WA in 2003. One of the key elements of this strategy was
to respond to the Transport Committee's call to move away from oils as
a fuel to gases and hydrogen as alternative energy sources.
One
of the results was a unique collaboration between the DPI (Department
for Planning and Infrastructure), DaimlerChrysler, BP Kwinana Refinery,
Ballard Power Systems, Path Transport, the Public Transport Authority
and Murdoch University to help address this problem.
Hydrogen's characteristics
of being colourless, odourless and non-toxic, compared to more
traditional energy sources such as coal, oil, liquefied natural gas and
diesel, make it much easier on the lungs.
BOC Gases, a leading provider of gases and related products in Australia, takes the crude H2
(Hydrogen) from the BP Refinery in Kwinana, then through various stages
of purification, makes the Ultra High Purity Hydrogen (UHP H2).
Timothy
Few, Major Customer Executive in the Process Gas Solutions Area of BOC
Gases, said the UHP H2 was loaded into jumbo tube trailers and
transported to Morley refuelling station, where it was then compressed
into the storage facilities on the bus.
BOC Gases was
forced to specially devise a unique 'cold filling' process, now used
world wide, in order to fill the buses in a short space of time.
Mr Few has taken several rides on the EcoBuses and likes how it handles.
"I have personally ridden on the bus many times and from a user's perspective, it was a very comfortable ride,'' he said.
"The use of H2
in fuel cells is a very clean application because the only by-products
of the process are water vapour and a small amount of heat.
"The only restrictive problem is the economics of running such a bus which no doubt in time will be resolved."
The hydrogen
gets consumed by Fuel Cells, designed & constructed by Canadian
based Ballard Power Systems. Since 2004, systems engineer, Mr Jamie
Ally, relocated to Perth as a local representative of Ballard.
Mr
Ally says the Perth EcoBuses are based on the latest
Mercedes-BenzCitaro chassis, with a Ballard HY-205 fuel cell engine and
Ballard Mk902 fuel cell stacks.
In regards to how they
operate, Mr Ballard explains: "Fuel cells consume hydrogen and oxygen
from air, and produce electricity, water vapour (steam), and heat. The
voltage across each fuel cell is approximately 0.7V, so the fuel cells
are "stacked" in series to create a useful voltage - hence the phrase
"fuel cell stacks."
There are two stacks in the Ecobus,
with nearly 1000 cells in each stack. There is also a data acquisition
system on each EcoBus which collects information and is then stored and
analysed in the Ballard Power Systems Headquarters in Vancouver,
Canada. Mr Ally says this data is provided as input to future
technological development.
Currently Path Transit, a
contractor to Transperth based in Morley, is responsible for operating
and maintaining all three EcoBuses.
Driver Paul
Wroblewski is one of the original drivers who was chosen for the trial
and has thoroughly been enjoying being part of the EcoBuses.
"At
first, I was a little sceptical in how they would compare to the
traditional buses I had been driving, but I soon noticed just how
smooth and quiet they are to drive."
"Passengers generally enjoy their ride and also comment on the quietness of the bus."
In
September this year, the Department hosted the Alternative Transport
Energies Conference, which attracted international delegates and
considerable focus was once again placed on the EcoBuses.
As
the trial draws to a close in September 2007, the findings which will
determine whether or not the EcoBus will be seen as an every day
transport alternative, will be highly anticipated.
Article from: http://www.hydro.com.au/
For further information about the trial, visit http://www.dpi.wa.gov.au/ecobus/
|
