Ballard Power Systems has signed an agreement with CALSTART, a nonprofit organization focused on clean transportation activities, to deploy a fuel cell hybrid bus at the University of California campus in Irvine. BAE Systems and ElDorado National are also participating in the project, which will be complete next year.
Ballard will supply its FCvelocity-HD6 power module, along with engineering services support. The 150 kW module features a control unit that interfaces with a system controller, making it a ‘plug-and-play’ product for any fuel cell or hybrid fuel cell bus platform, the company says.
This will be the sixth fuel cell hybrid bus produced based on the American Fuel Cell Bus (AFCB) configuration. The AFCB utilizes Ballard's fuel cell module to provide primary power – in combination with BAE Systems' propulsion and power management systems – deployed in an ElDorado National 40-foot transit bus.
The project with UC Irvine is funded through the California Energy Commission under its Alternative and Renewable Fuel and Vehicle Technology Program.
