Zero Emission Vehicles with a Hydrogen Infrastructure

With support from the Department of Energy (DOE) and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Proton OnSite’s latest hydrogen refueling station was officially opened in the metro Washington area. The National Park Service (NPS) is hosting the station at its Brentwood Avenue maintenance facility for a duration of four years. The hydrogen refueling station highlights the recent developments in hydrogen fueling station design.

Proton OnSite’s Hydrogen Refueling Station

The station has a novel and compact equipment arrangement, which allows for easy sitting and accelerated commissioning. It is a collaborative project, where Proton OnSite supplied the equipment through an investment from its corporate partner SunHydro, and DOE provided design support through the Tech Val program office.

Additional site development and program management support was contributed by NREL to enable a fully operational refueling station that will cater to fuel cell electric vehicle (FCEV) deployment in the metro Washington area, and offer an educational and outreach opportunity to zero emission vehicle stakeholders.

The refueling facility provides fuel to FCEVs involved in activities associated with the demonstration, while also evaluating the reliability and safety of PEM electrolysis as a source of zero emission fuel. It is not a public access station, but advances in sustainable transportation and fueling demonstrated through this collaborative project will help realize public retail stations of the future.

We are thrilled to team up with DOE, NREL, and the National Park Service to provide hydrogen fueling capability to our nation’s capital. In order to support the early market development of fuel cell electric vehicles, it is important that clean transportation stakeholders in Washington experience the technology firsthand. Proton OnSite’s hydrogen fueling station at the NPS Brentwood Avenue site will provide a clean and safe source of hydrogen fuel to enable this exciting deployment of FCEV’s.

John Zagaja, Senior Vice President of Engineering, Proton OnSite

As major automobile manufacturers now offer a range of FCEV models, this station opening is a timely addition to the existing hydrogen fueling infrastructure. The deployment of this refueling station offers an opportunity to look at cleaner transportation options in the region and firsthand experience with FCEV technology by policy makers in the seat of the US government.

Hydrogen Generation Technology

Proton OnSite is a major player in hydrogen system solutions, and the company is proud to demonstrate its advanced hydrogen generation technology and system integration capability at the station. It is involved in the manufacture of PEM electrolyzers that generate hydrogen from water and electricity in a clean and safe process.

Carbon neutral transportation fuel can be generated with PEM electrolysis when the electricity is from renewable sources. The company is no stranger to supporting clean transportation infrastructure, as it has taken part in over 30 hydrogen fueling station projects, and has run a public access hydrogen fueling station at its facility in Connecticut for the past six years.

This information has been sourced, reviewed and adapted from materials provided by Proton OnSite.

For more information on this source, please visit Proton OnSite.