Hydrogen enters the round

For several years now, car manufacturers have seen their future in the development of electric cars. But now hydrogen enters the round of fuels expected for a greener future, especially since this gas has many advantages.

This is at least what the car manufacturer Toyota considers who, for many years already, has studied the way in which hydrogen could serve as fuel for internal combustion engines of its vehicle park. We think about it enough to seriously explore this option, very different from the fuel cell which is currently used in the Mirai model for example.

It is with its prototype called Gr Corolla H2 Concept that Toyota managed to develop its technology. This car is a competition version of the famous Compact Corolla, a version designed to be used specifically at the Japan endurance championship: the Super Taikyu Series.

The manufacturer has been contributing to it since 2021 with its hydrogen vehicle. At the start, its model worked from gas hydrogen. However, the Japanese firm made a significant change in 2023 to rather switch to liquid hydrogen. This option has a considerable advantage since it reduces the size of the tanks, which makes the use of space more effective.

To use liquid hydrogen, the Japanese firm has however always encountered a major problem: hydrogen losses which are due to vaporization caused by external heat. You should know that to liquefy hydrogen, the temperature used must be very low, -252.87 ° C, which generates significant technical complexity.

It is this problem of hydrogen losses that we attacked in 2024, to finally arrive at the competition last November with a fairly improved version.

Important innovations

During the Super Taikyu 2024 final, Toyota presented a version of its competition model with certain added values. Among the improvements in its model, there is in particular a pump which is now more durable thanks to a new mechanism of double effect crankshaft. The prototype also presents a new form of reservoir, which is now oval, which increases its capacity by 50 %.

So many advances that today improve the competitiveness and efficiency of the vehicle while progressing towards more viable technology.

But the major improvement, the one that caught more attention last year, is the solution that Toyota proposed to resolve its famous evaporation problem. The manufacturer has created a sophisticated system which now makes it possible to recover the released gas during conduct under the effect of the heat of the components to reuse it.

The vaporized gas, which hitherto dissipated in the atmosphere, is now directed to an automatic pressurize to be converted into usable fuel. A small fuel cell operates afterwards of this hydrogen. This is how Toyota explained his innovation, not without pride.

This means that now, the device produces electricity while replacing the classic alternator, to provide energy to the components of the vehicle. We are thinking here of the liquid hydrogen pump, in particular. Finally, the excess gases are converted into a water vapor by a catalyst, before being evacuated outside.

The process may seem a bit complicated so explained, and it is indeed. That said, it nevertheless constitutes a major advance in optimizing the energy efficiency of hydrogen engines. The fact remains that the complexity of this solution is raised and raises questions about its feasibility in vehicles that will be used by the ordinary, beyond the racing tracks.

Indeed, the Japanese manufacturer is currently rolling in fifth speed to accelerate the development of this technology, its use in serial cars seems, for the moment, limited. Large -scale adoption is also hampered by high costs and technical constraints. Will the innovations in this program be adapted to the automobile of tomorrow? Will they remain confined to the field of competition? All this remains to be seen.

What is obvious, on the other hand, since it is necessary to return to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, is that Toyota continues to push the limits of engineering and continues to assert himself as a pioneer in exploration alternative energies. To date, the Japanese manufacturer has continued to seek collaborators who will allow him to make new advances. In short, it will be funny to follow.

To reach carbon neutrality with electricity is good. But reaching it with electricity and hydrogen, it might be even better.