STILL Fuel Cell Technology

With "Green EU 2050", the EU has set a target to become climate-neutral by 2050. The main aim is to prevent CO₂ emissions. One approach to reducing greenhouse gases is using green hydrogen, H₂, which can be converted into energy and heat in a climate-neutral process. The use of green hydrogen in intralogistics therefore offers significant leverage when it comes to completely avoiding CO₂ emissions. When used in combination with other logistical applications, such as a hydrogen-powered fleet of heavy goods trucks, the synergies can be exploited and the operating costs heavily reduced.

In order to achieve the "Green EU" goal, "green hydrogen" must be produced and used. The color of the hydrogen refers to the extraction process. Green hydrogen is produced from sustainable non-depletable energy sources, e.g. by using energy from wind power or photovoltaics. In distinction to this, there is "gray hydrogen", which is still in use today. In the production of gray hydrogen, natural gas is usually converted into hydrogen and CO₂ under heat (steam reforming). The CO₂ is then released unused into the atmosphere, thus increasing the global greenhouse effect: the production of one ton of hydrogen produces about 10 tons of CO₂ . Blue hydrogen is gray hydrogen, but its CO₂ is captured and stored during production (Carbon Capture and Storage, CCS). The CO₂ generated during hydrogen production is thus not released into the atmosphere, and hydrogen production can be considered CO₂ -neutral in balance sheet terms. Hydrogen produced by the thermal decomposition of methane (methane pyrolysis) is called turquoise hydrogen. Instead of CO₂ , solid carbon is produced in the process.

In a fuel cell, the refueled hydrogen is converted into water with the addition of atmospheric oxygen. This chemical reaction generates electrical energy that is used to power the vehicle.

When we talk about fuel cells in the industrial trucks sector, we mean ‘battery replacement modules’ (BRMs). A BRM is a closed system and corresponds to a specific battery compartment in its shape, size and weight. The BRM contains all the components required to generate electricity. These include the fuel cells, the hydrogen tank, tank ports and a small lithium-ion battery, as well as other components.

Once the tank is filled with hydrogen, which only takes a few moments, the fuel cell produces electrical energy for the intended application directly on board the truck. The process generates emissions of pure water vapour or water. The integrated lithium-ion battery acts as an energy store, supplying the truck with a constant flow of energy. Through this process, any excess or recovered energy is stored temporarily, which means that the truck can easily cater for peaks in electricity consumption, e.g. when lifting a load.

Fuel cells for intralogistics applications are designed to run up to one shift. However, the real range depends on the respective customer application. The great advantage of a fuel cell is the enormously short refueling time of 2-3 minutes.

No. STILL currently only offers the "Fuel Cell-ready" option at the factory. Retrofitting existing vehicles is not possible.

The hydrogen required is comparable to diesel fuel for internal combustion engine forklifts. However, hydrogen differs in terms of production, transport, storage and the necessary safety precautions. The infrastructure can vary - depending on whether the hydrogen is to be produced on the premises by electrolysis itself or delivered by trailer. Possible components are therefore:

• Hydrogen trailer, if H₂ is delivered
• Hydrogen electrolyzer, if H₂ is produced on site, e.g. by wind power or photovoltaics
• High pressure compressor High-pressure intermediate storage
• Pipeline system Dispenser (dispenser for H₂ refueling)

For the operation, refueling and storage of a fuel cell or fuel cell-powered vehicle in conjunction with a hydrogen infrastructure, national and/or regional laws/regulations must be observed. Depending on the location, local regulatory agencies, fire departments, and insurance companies should be involved in the planning and construction. For the construction of the hydrogen infrastructure, there are specialised planners and construction experts who can provide advice.

There are different institutions that provide funding, including:

• Europe:
  • Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking, Funding & Financing | www.fch.europa.eu
• Germany
  • National Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technology Innovation Programme (NIP)
    www.now-gmbh.de/de/bundesfoerderung-wasserstoff-und-brennstoffzelle
  • Project Management Organisation Jülich: https://www.ptj.de/projektfoerderung
  • Regionale funding programmes via state governments
• France:
  • ADEME (Agence de la Transition Écologique)
    Climate change - ecological, energy transition - ADEME

The funding programmes are limited in time and set up with a fixed budget. As a rule, an interested party must apply for the funding budget via a funding application and competes with other applicants. The focus is on the volume of CO₂ savings. The higher the savings, the higher the probability of a positive funding response.

Varies depending on the funding programme. The NOW GmbH funding call (2020), for example, had a volume of 5 million euros. Eligible for funding were industrial trucks with hydrogen drive to the extent of 40% of the additional investment costs compared to the "normal" vehicle. For 2021, the third funding call of the NIP is also planned with a funding quota of 40% of the additional investment costs. In addition to the industrial trucks, the necessary hydrogen infrastructure will also be funded again. A current overview of the funding calls can be found here: Funding calls - NOW GmbH.

Example for calculating the funding amount: