- Minister Untersteller honors international hydrogen projects
The winners of this year’s f-cell award are the company Alstom in the category “Products & Markets” and the research institute Hahn-Schickard for “Research & Development”. Baden-Württemberg’s Environment Minister Franz Untersteller presented the awards on September 10, 2019, as part of the ceremony in Stuttgart’s Wagenhallen.
The four winners of the 24-Hour Hydrogen Challenge, which was held this year for the first time in Germany, were also recognized. Overall winner is the driver team “Weiter mit Wasserstoff”, which was able to best three other teams in its hydrogen-powered car. The award ceremony was held as part of the annual f-cell event: More than 500 international hydrogen and fuel cell industry representatives from 21 countries exchanged views over two days. They came from research, politics and industry to discuss the possibilities of this climate-friendly technology. A total of 40 exhibitors were represented at the trade fair and conference.
Actually, all of the submissions were worthy of recognition: That was the conclusion of the jury of this year’s f-cell award. But in the end, there could only be two winners: Alstom came out on top in the “Products & Markets” category with the world’s first fuel cell-powered passenger train. The fuel cell uses hydrogen to generate electricity for the drive system. The completely emission-free train, dubbed “Coradia iLint”, is low-noise and gives off only water vapor and condensed water. Two trains have been in service in Lower Saxony since September 2018. Since then, two large orders have been added: Lower Saxony has ordered 14 vehicles and Hessen 27.
In addition to the first fuel cell passenger train, a new electrolysis material has also won an award
Hahn-Schickard won in the “Research & Development” category with a newly developed material for electrolysis. The expensive catalyst iridium oxide (IrOx) is one of the main cost drivers in the water electrolysis process. A catalyst layer produced by the researchers from IrOx nanoparticles and nanofibers was able to significantly reduce the required IrOx content while maintaining the same performance and simultaneously optimizing the layer’s service life.
Franz Untersteller, Baden-Württemberg’s Minister of the Environment, personally presented the prizes. His ministry and the Stuttgart Region Economic Development Agency have been supporting the f-cell award for many years. “In my opinion, hydrogen and fuel cell technology can play a decisive role in the implementation of a climate-friendly transport revolution,” said Minister Franz Untersteller. He added, “Events such as f-cell are extremely important for the industry and international exchange and knowledge transfer. I am extremely pleased that the f-cell here in Stuttgart is helping to develop the energy storage and mobility of tomorrow.” This year is the 19th time that the f-cell award has been presented.
Premiere in Germany: 24-Hour Hydrogen Challenge
The entrants of the first German 24-Hour Hydrogen Challenge also arrived at the venue just in time for the evening event. Four teams started on Monday, September 9, from Stuttgart with fuel cell vehicles for a one-day round trip. The participants drove across Germany on routes of their own choosing and visited landmarks or places with a relationship to hydrogen. For this they received points. Most efficient and fastest was the team “Weiter mit Wasserstoff”. Also in the category Creative Challenge the team “Weiter mit Wasserstoff” prevailed. In the category Classic Challenge the team “HYghlanders” emerged victorious. The hydrogen for the fuel cell vehicles was sponsored by the H2 Mobility consortium at its hydrogen filling stations. “There is an enormous potential for climate protection in the transport sector. The technology is market-ready and a real alternative when it comes to long range travel – as the Challenge has impressively demonstrated,” said Nikolas Iwan, Managing Director of H2 Mobility. The company is a joint venture of various industrial companies and plans to operate a total of 100 hydrogen filling stations in Germany by 2020.
The next f-cell will take place from September 29 to 30, 2020, once again in Stuttgart – for the twentieth time.
Current information about f-cell, the exhibitors, the program and the speakers will be posted on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/company/f-cell/ and Twitter https://twitter.com/fcell_Germany. The official hashtag is #fcell19.
About f-cell
Founded in 2001, f-cell is one of the oldest international trade events for the hydrogen and fuel cell industry, as well as one of the most important in the world. It provides a comprehensive overview of relevant international markets and technological advances. Here, participants will make contacts and meet decision-makers. The interactive format offers an ideal platform for experts and newcomers to establish, discuss and build sustainable business relationships. The f-cell award honors innovative hydrogen and fuel cell projects and technologies and is supported by the Baden-Württemberg Ministry for the Environment, Climate and Energy Economy and the Stuttgart Region Economic Development Corporation (Wirtschaftsförderung Region Stuttgart GmbH, WRS). The f-cell consists of a conference, interactive workshops, an evening event with award ceremony and an international trade fair. It will be held in Stuttgart on September 10 and 11, 2019.
www.f-cell.de
Read the most up to date Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Industry news at FuelCellsWorks
