Technology | The fuel cell is installed in a single-seater

The development of the hydrogen fuel cell in the automotive world is a process that I find interesting to follow. In my opinion, there is a good chance that over the next few years, it will end up in your car, in mine, in the vehicles of Mr. and Mrs. Everybody, you know.

Bertrand Godin
special collaboration

The hydrogen fuel cell seems destined to offer consumers a good alternative to the battery-powered electrical system that is currently in vogue.

For maximum clarity, we are talking here about a fuel cell that transforms hydrogen into electrical energy. With this option, users could well have access to a better choice in the range of electric cars of tomorrow, which is not bad at all.

However, there is another advantage of the hydrogen fuel cell which should please, and which is not trivial. Be aware that filling up with hydrogen can be done in just a few minutes, unlike the time required to charge electric vehicles on the market.

If the cell does indeed reach our cars one day, the user will only have to fill the tank of his vehicle with hydrogen at a specialized station, a bit like we do with gasoline at the moment. Except that instead of being liquid, the fuel will be a gas that emits no GHGs, so that when the vehicle is on the road, its exhaust pipe will emit steam, that’s all.

The BAC e-Mono

The hydrogen fuel cell is therefore making its way into the automotive industry. Today, it is the small British car manufacturer BAC (Briggs Automotive Company), established in Liverpool, which comes to us with something new, by presenting a new single-seater sports car on which it is working, a racing car powered by a fuel cell hydrogen: the BAC e-Mono. And the trials look promising.

In a series of numerical simulations, BAC found that this car should be able to reach a top speed of 265 km/h and would be able to go from 0 to 100 km/h in 2.2 seconds. All the same.

In fact, it appears that even with a heavier weight of 149 kg compared to the regular version, this new car manages to be faster. On digital tests, the e-Mono has indeed demonstrated that it gained two seconds on each lap of the Silverstone circuit, in England.

And things could get even better since its weight could be further reduced. It could be reduced by 15 to 20 kg, by adopting a carbon casing for the fuel cell, and it could weigh another 30 kg less with a new battery module which is currently in the development phase.

These are all advances that suggest that we could end up with even greater efficiency, and that a possible electric car powered by a hydrogen fuel cell could be quite pleasant to drive.

BAC’s reputation

You should know that the British manufacturer is already recognized as a precursor in the automotive industry, and its development work on the e-Mono is no exception, it seems. The racing car raises the bar again and does not leave fans insensitive.

To this day, driving enthusiasts are pretty impressed with the e-Mono. They see in this vehicle a perfect combination of autonomy, performance and absence of emissions, therefore impeccable in terms of the climate footprint.

But lately, BAC has innovated again. In collaboration with a British technology company, Viritech, the manufacturer has developed a solution to install the battery as far as possible under the seat of its vehicle with, just next to it, the fuel cell ready to store hydrogen. .

It was this car that was subjected to the simulation tests and which made it possible to note that the e-Mono was two seconds faster per lap at Silverstone. But still, the single-seater could complete ten laps before having to refuel.

On the road, it is estimated that the range of the vehicle could be 225 km and that with the improvements that are underway, the efficiency of fuel cells could increase the range of vehicles by 50%, and this, d here the year 2024. In other words tomorrow.

For the moment, BAC has not yet sent its e-Mono to the production phase, but the feasibility studies are conclusive. At the automaker, we now hope to have the financing required to move on to the proof of concept stage, and then ultimately to the production stage.

Well, we agree, the release date is not announced, far from it. But personally, I can’t wait to see more and, above all, to test drive it.