3938 APEG Mar.Apr Edit.indd - APEGBC

f eatures
28 MARCH/APRIL 2008 INNOVATION
comparison, have been put into regular service by
TransLink. Westport Innovations has calibrated the buses’
8.3 L C Gas Plus CNG engines so that they burn a gas
mixture containing 20% hydrogen and 80% natural gas
by volume. Th e HCNG and CNG baseline buses are being
subjected to a number of tests and evaluations and are part
of TransLink’s program to evaluate the latest propulsion
technologies and alternative fuels. In the program,
TransLink is monitoring fuel consumption, service calls,
emissions, acceleration, braking, hill climbing ability
and noise. Th ese HCNG buses produce 50% less nitrogen
oxides and 7% less carbon dioxide than CNG buses.
HCNG Transit Bus Fuelling Station
To provide fuel blending and dispensing
services to TransLink for the hydrogen
and compressed natural gas (HCNG)
buses, Clean Energy Fuels upgraded
the existing compressed natural gas
(CNG) fuelling station at TransLink’s
Port Coquitlam bus depot. Th e fuelling
station receives hydrogen from IWHUP’s
compressed hydrogen distribution
project, and mixes it with compressed
natural gas as it is being dispensed to
the buses. Th e mixture contains 20%
hydrogen and 80% natural gas by volume
and is dispensed at pressures up to 300
bar. Th e facility is capable of fi lling the
buses at CNG fast fi ll rates.
Stationary Fuel Cell Demonstration
Demonstrated through application at
a car wash in North Vancouver, a 150
kW Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM)
fuel cell made by Nuvera was integrated
by Sacré Davey to provide power to
Easywash’s cleaning bays, thus lowering
Easywash’s dependence on the BC
electricity grid. Heat, which is naturally
generated by the fuel cell, is used to warm
the process water, increasing the overall
efficiency of the system and further
lowering Easywash’s electricity usage.
Excess electricity is being net metered
back onto the grid.
Challenges
Achieving the goals of the Integrated
Waste Hydrogen Utilization Project within
a short timeframe has not been without
challenges. Numerous technical, logistical
and approval challenges were successfully
overcome by the various consortium
partners before the project entered the
demonstration phase in late 2007. One of
the main challenges faced was the fact that
the codes and standards for this industry
were and are still being developed. Draft
standards for hydrogen installations as well
as other standards from related industries
were studied and cross-referenced. Th e
findings were compiled and used to
develop the design standards.
Perhaps the most challenging problem
encountered was the fuel cell installation