Nissan’s Partnership with Unicamp and USP Will Bring Innovations on Ethanol-Fueled Fuel Cells Instead of Hydrogen

Nissan Develops A New Type Of Fuel Cell Powertrain Alongside Unicamp And USP For Cars That Uses An Ethanol Tank Instead Of Hydrogen

Nissan’s new technology in partnership with USP and Unicamp, named e-bio fuel cell, aims to overcome a common obstacle to the implementation of traditional vehicles with hydrogen fuel cells: the lack of hydrogen refueling infrastructure. Nissan’s system uses bioethanol, derived from renewable crops like corn or sugarcane, and this refueling infrastructure already exists in many areas.

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Unicamp And USP Create Something Unprecedented

The fuel cells powered by ethanol called E-bio should also be less expensive than traditional hydrogen systems because they do not require expensive carbon fiber tanks for pressurized hydrogen or costly precious metals like platinum as catalysts for electricity generation.

Nissan Plans To Bring The Technology To The Fleet Vehicle Market By Around 2020

“Using this fuel, it can have a broader application,” said Executive Vice President Hideyuki Sakamoto while announcing the development. “We don’t need hydrogen infrastructure. This is the biggest advantage, along with better safety.”

Nissan’s system and USP share its core technology with traditional fuel cell systems in vehicles like the Toyota Mirai or the Honda Clarity fuel cell sedans.

It requires hydrogen to be fed through its fuel chimney to generate electricity. And like existing vehicles, it uses this electricity to power an electric motor that drives the car. Excess electricity is also stored in an internal battery.

The Main Differences In The Unicamp, USP, And Nissan Project

But the biggest difference is that Nissan’s system generates its hydrogen inside the car using ethanol. This is done through an additional step managed by a component called a reformer.

The reformer converts the ethanol from the fuel tank into hydrogen, which is then fed into the fuel cell. In a traditional hydrogen fuel cell car, there is no reformer. The car’s fuel tank carries pressurized hydrogen pumped directly from a refueling station.