Nissan Motor Company released a new fuel cell stack for fuel cell electric vehicles with a power density 2.5 times greater than their previous model.
Improving the fuel cell stacks used in the vehicle type is considered key to seeing F.C.E.V.’s on the road. F.C.E.V.’s are considered zero-emission vehicles as they emit no pollutants except water vapor.
«We have made great strides in two critical areas: power density and cost. Our 2011-model fuel cell stack delivers power density at 2.5 kilowatts per liter, 2.5 times better than our 2005 model,» said Masanari Yanagisawa, a researcher who worked on this and previous fuel cells.
The researchers also managed to reduce the need for platinum, a catalyst key to the fuel cells ability to create power, by 75 percent – also slashing the cost.
Nissan has been spending considerable time and effort in developing practical applications for fuel cell electric vehicles, beginning in 2001 with a series of prototypes that cumulated in 2005 with one that achieved a range of 500 kilometers – matching a conventional car.
The auto giant continues to work on the development of practical applications of Fuel Cell Electric Vehicles to realize a Zero Emission society.