Back in January, we first told you about SunHydro’s ambitious plans to open enough solar-powered hydrogen refueling stations to create a “hydrogen highway” from Maine to Miami. Now, the first station is open and refueling a fleet of test cars from Toyota (shown above). Eventually, it will serve local fleets and public transportation systems in New Haven and Hartford.

In addition to the network of stations it will eventually join, the Wallingford refueling facility differs from other hydrogen stations in how it produces fuel — using electricity generated from on-site solar panels to derive hydrogen from water with a proton exchange membrane that Proton Energy built.

“The other places, it’s mostly delivered hydrogen which is made from natural gas,” said Tom Sullivan, SunHydro’s founder. “The biggest difference is that ours are solar powered and it’s made on-site with a proton electrolyzer. You’re literally driving on fuel that’s made from water and sun.”

After founding Lumber Liquidators, Sullivan bought Proton last August for $10.2 million. He’s an entrepreneur who wants to singlehandedly solve the “chicken and egg” problem of creating a hydrogen infrastructure.

Sullivan knows the first station won’t be an instant success. “There’s not going to be a line up the street,” he said. “The main thing is to get it going so the car companies can test their cars and get them ready for production in three to four years.”

Perhaps the biggest short-term beneficiary of the SunHydro station is Hartford’s public transit system, which currently relies on trucked-in hydrogen to power their four hydrogen fuel cell buses. “They have hydrogen buses with no hydrogen,” Sullivan said.

Sullivan also wants to show the public the benefits of hydrogen by demystifying the fueling process. The station is currently limited to hydrogen car users with card access, but otherwise it’s like any gas station — minus the dirty bathrooms, scratch tickets and beef jerky.

“Basically if you have a hydrogen car and you know how to fuel it, you can drive down there, slide your card in and fill up,” he said. “It’s well lit, it’s in the parking lot of the Proton Energy building right off of [route] 91 just south of Hartford.”

Sullivan said the station cost “a couple million” to build, but upcoming stations near highways outside of Boston and Washington, D.C. that may open as soon as next year are expected to cost less.

Fuel at SunHydro’s Wallingford station is currently running $10 per kilogram. Sullivan estimates that $50 would fill the tank of one of the Toyota test vehicles and offer a range of 350 miles (one of their test cars achieved 431 miles on a single tank while driving along the California coast). Ten Toyota FCHV-adv Highlander lookalikes are currently filling up at SunHydro, with cars from GM and Mercedes joining later.

Photo: Toyota

Authors: Keith Barry

to know more click here