Georgetown University Fuel Cell Bus Program
The Georgetown University Fuel Cell Bus Program has concluded.
This site will remain available for information on the background and history of the program. For inquiries on the program, please see the Contact page.
Generation I Fuel Cell Bus Program
Starting in the early 1980s, the Department of Energy (DOE) and the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) jointly embarked on an investigation to determine if a fuel cell bus operating on liquid fuel could have the potential to meet transit bus requirements. The concept of using a liquid fuel rather than gaseous hydrogen to power the fuel cell was based on several potential advantages. The approach provides quick and familiar refueling, simple on-board fuel storage, and less complex infrastructure investment for centralized fleets of transit buses. The main disadvantage of the liquid fuel alternative for a fuel cell bus is that hydrogen must be generated on-board the vehicle thereby requiring an additional component - a fuel processor. The key question is whether or not the addition of a fuel processor on the bus can be done such that any impact on the fuel cell bus performance and cost would be more than offset by the advantages of the simpler infrastructure. Methanol was chosen as the liquid fuel to be used because it has a high hydrogen-to-carbon ratio and is considered the easiest liquid fuel to reform into a hydrogen-rich reformate to power the fuel cell.
Generation I Buses TBB-2 and 3 at Georgetown University
The goals of the program were to reduce emissions, increase fuel efficiency, prove the potential of renewable fuels, and reduce vehicle noise. The overall purpose of the program was first and foremost to demonstrate the feasibility of achieving the stated goals using a liquid-fueled fuel cell system coupled with batteries. The application of fuel cells on buses was considered a good starting point for the following reasons:
- Transit buses were more tolerant of weight/volume constraints than automobiles
- Lower emission buses could immediately benefit inner cities environmentally
- Central fueling stations for transit buses would minimize fuel logistics issues
- Structured routes would allow quantification of operational and cost issues
- Fuel cell power would be compatible with day-to-day transit bus routine
- Transit buses offered an ideal opportunity to educate the public on the technology
The program was structured in stages that assessed progress and potential before moving forward to the next phase. A feasibility study was successfully completed in 1985 that led to the successful testing of brassboard systems before a full-scale bus development was approved. Three phosphoric acid fuel cell (PAFC)-powered 30-foot transit buses were then developed as proof-of-concept vehicles to test the viability of a liquid-fueled fuel cell buses to meet the power requirements of the transit bus application. These 30-foot buses, referred to as the Generation I Test Bed Buses (TBBs), were delivered in 1994-95 and were successful in validating the viability of the liquid-fueled fuel cell bus concept. They were series hybrid electric buses employing DC traction motors and powered by a 50 kW fuel cell system from Fuji Electric and 180 Amp-hour NiCd batteries.
Georgetown University (GU) as a member of the Program Management Team played an important role in technical oversight of the initial development program under contract to DOE. Based on the promise shown by the initial program, FTA awarded a grant to GU to continue the development toward commercially viable methanol-fueled fuel cell transit buses (see Generation II Methanol Fuel Cell Bus Program).