Adoption of Modern Hydrogen Technologies in Rail Transport

Abstract

Many new zero-emission propulsion technologies are being developed today due to the need to reduce the atmospheric carbon dioxide emissions. The impact of the transport sector on the environment drives a need for innovation, including innovation in the rail transport sector specifically. At the TRAKO fair of rail vehicles the newest technological solutions have been presented. These new vehicles are expected to take over the rail transport sector in the coming decades. Many of the presented solutions and prototypes focused on using hydrogen as fuel for a system of hydrogen fuel cells, which are then used to produce the electricity needed to drive the vehicle. The development of hydrogen fuel technologies in vehicle drives in recent years allowed for a set of new solutions to appear for all types of rail vehicles and applications. Hydrogen powered rail vehicles for transporting cargo, passengers, and shunting vehicles have been shown. This article provides a discussion of the newest hydrogen solutions and vehicles sent to the market. It was determined that the adoption of such solutions will be mainly restricted by the relative cost of the hydrogen fuel rather than the vehicles or fuel cell technologies themselves. The cost of hydrogen production, when powered by renewable Energy sources to enable reduced carbon dioxide emissions, would need to be reduced to at least $2.50 /kg of fuel in order to satisfy the requirements for widespread adoption.