Just like Toyota with its Mirai, or Honda with its Clarity Fuel Cell, Nissan arrives with another solution, but similar in the sense that all these manufacturers can skillfully switch to new concepts of vehicles running on hydrogen, as soon as the production will have reached a profitable industrial stage having reached critical mass.
So the choice of Nissan only confirms this trend (click to enlarge)
Nissan wrote:Nissan Motor is currently studying the development of a solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) system that generates electrical energy from bioethanol. The new system called e-Bio Fuel Cell - a world first for the automobile - has a SOFC-type fuel cell powered by bioethanol. SOFC is a fuel cell that uses the reaction of various fuels, including ethanol or natural gas, with oxygen to produce electricity with high efficiency.
The e-Bio Fuel Cell system produces electricity through the SOFC (energy generator) using bioethanol stored in the vehicle. It uses hydrogen transformed from fuel through a reformer and oxygen in the atmosphere, and produces an electrochemical reaction generating electricity used to propel the vehicle.
SOFC fuel cell system
Unlike conventional systems, the e-Bio Fuel-Cell system has solid oxide technology as a power source, offering better fuel efficiency to give the vehicle a range similar to that of petrol cars (more than 600 km). . In addition, the various characteristics linked to electric propulsion such as silent driving, linear starting and fast acceleration, allow you to enjoy the joys and comfort of a pure electric vehicle (EV).
Fuel cell systems use chemicals that react with oxygen, producing energy without releasing harmful byproducts. Bioethanol fuels, including those from sugar cane and corn, are widely available in countries in South and North America, and in Asia. The e-Bio Fuel-Cell system, using bioethanol, can offer an environmentally friendly alternative and create opportunities for regional energy production, while supporting the existing infrastructure.
When power is generated in a fuel cell system, CO2 is usually emitted. With the bioethanol-based system, CO2 emissions are neutralized in the growth process of the sugar cane that makes up the bio-fuel, which allows it to have a "quasi-neutral carbon cycle", with a slight increase in CO2 level.
In the future, the e-Bio Fuel-Cell system will become easier to use. For example, a water-ethanol mixture will be easier and safer to handle than most other fuels. And since this will remove the limitations of creating a whole new infrastructure, this mix has great growth potential.
Operating costs will be similar to or even lower than today's electric vehicles because the e-Bio Fuel-Cell system will respond to more customer requests, with a shorter refueling time, greater autonomy and a power range higher.