Design Space Assessment of Hydrogen Storage Onboard Medium and Heavy Duty Fuel Cell Electric Trucks

Hydrogen fuel cells are an important part of a portfolio of strategies for reducing petroleum use and emissions from medium and heavy duty (MD and HD) vehicles; however, their deployment is very limited compared to other powertrains. This paper addresses gaseous hydrogen storage tank design and location on representative MD and HD vehicles. Storage design is based on vehicle size and occupation. The available storage space on representative vehicles is assessed and is used to estimate the weight and capacity of composite material-based compressed gaseous storage at 350 and 700 bar. Results demonstrate the technical feasibility of using hydrogen storage for fuel cell electric trucks (FCETs) across a wide range of the MD and HD vehicle market. This analysis is part of a longer-term project to understand which market segments provide the maximum economic impact and greenhouse gas reduction opportunities for FCETs.