by To date, the use of hydrogen as an alternative fuel for mobility has important potential for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, especially in the heavy transport sector, where there are not many viable alternatives.
Hydrogen electric vehicles mainly use polymer fuel cell technology, devices that use oxygen from the air and hydrogen, which are fueled separately within the device, and converted into water, producing electrical work, which is converted into mechanical work that allows the propulsion of the vehicle.
Since 2015 there have been commercial vehicles that use fuel cells, produced by the major car manufacturers.
Why is the diffusion of these vehicles so slow?
Andrea Baricci, professor of Industrial Technical Physics at the Politecnico di Milano, illustrates the limitations to the diffusion of this technology and analyzes the possible solutions.