Al Gore and T. Boone Pickens Hydrogen Education Challenge, Week 6 summary

Here is a list of hydrogen facts that were posted in week 6 of the Hydrogen Education Challenge:

(Note: The seven items from day 26 to day 32 cover plug-in battery technology which is a competitor of hydrogen fuel cells.)

Day 26

Honda CEO Takeo Fukui blasted plug-in battery technology in a Wall Street Journal interview in June by saying:

“Wall Street Journal: Other auto makers, including Nissan Motor Co. and General Motors Corp., are planning to launch electric vehicles, but Honda isn’t offering this alternative.  Why not?

Takeo Fukui: We feel the practical feasibility of the electric vehicle is very limited.  The biggest issue is driving distance.  The other issue is the recharging time.  The FCX Clarity can be recharged in one minute.  With the electric vehicle, it can take several hours.  However, this is not to deny the possibility of battery electric vehicles.  It’s very useful for vehicles with restricted applications, like golf carts.”

Day 27

The following AutoblogGreen post notes that Steve Ellis, Manager of Fuel Cell Marketing for Honda, said that:

“There is a group of ‘EV Zealots’ who are constantly criticizing all hydrogen related work based on flawed arguments and without examining all the costs of a plug-in system.”

Day 28

The recent Atlantic Monthly article discusses all of the problems that GM is having with the Chevy Volt battery and makes it clear that the 40-mile battery range claimed for the vehicle is completely unproven.

Day 29

The Toyota Prius plug-in car can only travel 7 miles on the current nickel-metal hydride batteries.

Day 30

Jaycie Chitwood, Senior Strategic Planner for Advanced Technologies at Toyota, said that the company expects that the battery driving range for plug-in hybrid cars is only expected to improve to around 10-20 miles when lithium-ion batteries are used in the future.