Performance Food Group Inc., one of the largest food and food service distribution companies in North America, has completed the first commercial run with a Hyzon Motors Inc. liquid hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicle.
Starting in Temple, Texas, the truck completed deliveries to eight PFG customers near Dallas, traveling over 540 miles on a 16-hour continuous run, including over 100-degree Fahrenheit temperatures.
The run – further than the distance from Sacramento to San Diego – demonstrates the viability of on-board liquid hydrogen to fuel long-distance, zero-emission transport, the companies say.
“With increased range and no added weight in comparison to our gaseous hydrogen trucks, we believe this liquid hydrogen demo run has demonstrated potential viability for the future of liquid hydrogen in commercial trucking,” says Hyzon CEO Parker Meeks. “Once commercialized, our liquid hydrogen vehicle powered by our proprietary 200 kW fuel cell system should be able to provide long-distance range between 650 and 800 miles, on par with many diesel truck range requirements.”
Compared to gaseous hydrogen, the current industry standard, liquid hydrogen allows Hyzon to increase the amount of fuel on board significantly thanks to increased energy density, with no changes to vehicle weight or payload. To maintain the energy-dense liquid state, hydrogen requires cold temperatures of -400 degrees Fahrenheit. Hyzon partnered with Chart Industries to develop a tank system capable of storing liquid hydrogen at extremely cold temperatures and delivering it to the fuel cell system at the necessary pressure.
“This is a meaningful accomplishment for the hydrogen ecosystem, as long-haul and heavy-duty transportation is a key end-use for liquid hydrogen,” says Jill Evanko, Chart’s CEO and president. “Our investment in our unique cryogenic liquid hydrogen onboard tank and our liquid hydrogen test facility support progress in the hydrogen industry, with the Hyzon and PFG road demonstration another key step in the evolution of hydrogen commercialization.”
For vehicle testing and the demo run, liquid hydrogen transportation, storage and dispensing was provided by Certarus, with liquid hydrogen produced by Air Liquide.