Pumping it up with Schwarzenegger and Lutz

California’s Hydrogen Highway

General Motors has adapted a HUMMER H2 SUT to run on hydrogen and will share it with the office of the Governor of California. No, Arnie can’t buy it. The H2H is not a production model; it will assist efforts to learn more about hydrogen storage and refueling infrastructure development. Funny they would pick such an experimental vehicle to illustrate how industry and government can collaborate to make fuel cell technology and California’s Hydrogen Highway Network viable. Is that called playing to your audience?

“The H2H is a bold experiment that along with the Hydrogen Highway Network will help California demonstrate the economic and technical viability of hydrogen,” said California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. “Californians invent the future and the H2H shows that a vehicle of today can run on the fuel of tomorrow.”

The H2H is a HUMMER H2 that has been extensively re-engineered to operate on gaseous hydrogen fuel, with its primary tailpipe emission being water vapor. The truck uses a supercharged version of the vehicle’s original Vortec 6000 (6.0-liter V-8) internal combustion engine. The H2H is not intended for production.

“The H2H was created for two purposes,” said Elizabeth Lowery, GM vice president, Environment & Energy. “It brings focus and attention to the journey to a hydrogen economy, and it will provide GM with the principal learnings on hydrogen storage, hydrogen delivery systems, and hydrogen refueling infrastructure development.” Just like the hybrid has given manufacturers information and insight into the future fuel cell vehicle, the HICE will do the same.
Long-term vision

“As part of our march toward zero with fuel cell vehicles, we need to learn many things about the handling and storage of hydrogen, and it’s used as a motor vehicle fuel,” said Lowery. “We believe the H2H will improve our understanding of using hydrogen as a motor vehicle fuel and of creating a viable hydrogen-refueling infrastructure.”

Also, for its experimental use, HUMMER will use the H2H to bring attention to the promise of hydrogen, especially the public and private partnerships required to create a hydrogen economy. For example, H2H will be used to help illustrate important milestones in the development of the Californias Hydrogen Highway Network, an initiative that combines the efforts of industry and government to develop that state’s infrastructure, research, and economic development efforts.

The H2H was created by a team of GM engineers from the U.S., Canada, and Germany, in collaboration with Quantum Technologies (NASDAQ: QTWW), a California-based leader in packaged fuel systems for hydrogen and one of GMs fuel cell technology alliance partners.