Lord Bamford: We’re Too Mesmerised By Musk — Here’s Why I’m Building A Hydrogen JCB
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article in the Sunday Times.
This is the sub-heading.
JCB’s Lord Bamford has spent £100m on a hydrogen engine. Tesla’s tech won’t suit everyone, he tells Jim Armitage
These are my thoughts.
The Need For Zero-Carbon Construction Equipment
Construction sites can be dangerous places and in addition to the obvious dangers, there are hidden pollutants in the atmosphere on sites.
Health and Safety will surely demand an improvement in air quality on construction sites for the protection of the workforce and nearby residents.
If JCB can produce zero-carbon construction equipment, then whether it is electric or hydrogen, this will be to their advantage.
High Speed Two And Low-Carbon Construction
High Speed Two is the UK’s biggest construction project and these posts on this blog, talk about low-carbon construction.
- HS2 Reveals Dramatic Carbon Saving With Ambitious Modular Design For Thame Valley Viaduct
- HS2 Smashes Carbon Target
- HS2 To Trial New Building Method Which Could Provide Carbon-Free Energy
- New HS2 Pilot Project Swaps Steel For Retired Wind Turbine Blades To Reinforce Concrete
- World First As HS2 Trials Dual-Fuel Piling Rig On London Site
If High Speed Two are thinking this way, how many other projects will be built in a similar way?
Decarbonising Cargo Handling
It should be noted that JCB are involved in Freeport East at Felixstowe/Harwich.
Ports will be the sort of workplaces, where all vehicles should be zero-carbon, to protect the workforce. Some of the container handling machines are large and would be ideal for hydrogen.
Decarbonising Agriculture
JCB also make tractors, like the Fastrac and other equipment for agriculture. As they often work around people, hydrogen could be much better.
New Markets
Zero-carbon engines will result in new products for new markets.
Lord Bamford is on track to create valuable new markets for his diggers and other equipment.
Hydrogen-Powered Land Speed Record
JCB already hold the land speed record with the JCB Dieselmax, at over 350 mph.
This paragraph from Wikipedia describes the powerplant.
The car is powered by two specially-tuned versions of the production JCB444 powerplant, developing up to 750 brake horsepower (560 kW) each (over five times the power output of the production version with 90 psi (6 bar) of boost) and featuring four cylinders and 5 litres of displacement, accompanied by two stage turbochargers, intercooler and aftercooler.
I believe that getting that amount of power out of a production diesel engine, shows that JCB’s combustion engineers could do the same for a hydrogen-powered vehicle.
Sussex Will Be Leader In Hydrogen Energy Production
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on The Argus.
These are the first three paragraphs.
The county is today launching its bid to become a pioneer for use and production of hydrogen energy.
Experts will unveil Brighton’s hydrogen strategy this morning showing how the city and surrounding areas are championing a clean energy infrastructure.
With plans for a Worthing crematorium to become the first in the world powered entirely by hydrogen, development of a green energy production facility in Shoreham, and a growing fleet of hydrogen-powered buses in Crawley, the region is already breaking ground in the hydrogen industry – and shows no sign of stopping.
These are my thoughts.
The Plan Is Comprehensive
This document of the Council website, is entitled the Greater Brighton Hydrogen Strategy.
It is very comprehensive and discusses hydrogen in Sussex from all angles.
Every Council in the UK needs to have their own comprehensive strategy like this.
The Report Cautions That Greater Brighton May Need More Renewable Energy
Consider.
- The Rampion wind farm, with a capacity of 400 MW is already operating in the sea South of Brighton.
- This should be joined by the 1200 GW rampion 2 wind farm in the next few years.
It is unlikely substantial onshore wind and solar farms will be built in the area.
Gatwick Airport Is Expected To Need A Hydrogen Supply
The strategy says this about Gatwick and the two Rampion wind farms.
The offshore wind farm Rampion is large enough to be considered nationally significant infrastructure. There
is a second development for this wind farm planned for 2025-6, which will connect into Bolney substation as
per the existing wind farm.The GBEB energy plan suggested that an electrolyser could be sited there, although there are no identified demand locations nearby other than potential refuelling of passing traffic on the A23.
However, considering the relative distance to Gatwick airport, which is expected to be a significant future
demand, there may be an opportunity for a direct pipeline. This would be further into the future and requires
further analysis and bilateral engagement between Rampion and Gatwick. Engagement with Rampion found
that, given the large population supplied by the Rampion wind farms, and the relative lack of other large-scale
renewables locally, these wind farms are unlikely to face significant curtailment and will fully contribute to
decarbonising the local electricity grid. Therefore, using Rampion to produce hydrogen by electrolysis is not
seen as the best use case in the near term.
It looks to me, that because of the electricity demand in the Brighton and Gatwick area, that a big decision needs to be made to create some more renewable capacity.
Could this mean a Rampion 3 or perhaps a fleet of small modular nuclear reactors at Dungeness?
An Electrolyser At Bolney Substation
This Google map shows the position of Bolney substation.
Note.
- The A23 is the main London-Brighton road.
- Bolney substation is indicated by the red arrow.
- The substation doesn’t have very good road access.
- I also suspect that the locals wouldn’t like an electrolyser in their midst.
On a brief look, I suspect that an electrolyser at Bolney substation will be a non-starter.
Shoreham Port As A Hydrogen Hub
The strategy mentions Shoreham Port several times, but gives the impression that progress is slow.
This Google Map shows Shoreham Port.
Note.
- Shoreham is in the West.
- The port reaches a long way to the East.
- The 420 MW gas-fired Shoreham Power station, is at the Eastern end of the port, close to the sea.
There appears to be spaces along the water for developing hydrogen infrastructure.
This page on the H2Green web site is entitled Agreement to Develop Clean Energy Hub for Shoreham Port, Sussex, starts with this paragraph.
Getech, the geoscience and geospatial technology provider and data-led energy asset developer, is pleased to announce that its wholly owned hydrogen subsidiary, H2 Green, has signed a Collaboration Agreement (the “Agreement”) with Shoreham Port.
It lists these three highlights.
- H2 Green granted a two-year legally binding exclusive right to develop a renewable energy hub (the “Hub”) at the Port of Shoreham, West Sussex.
- Under plans submitted by H2 Green to Shoreham Port, the Hub will initially focus on the provision of green hydrogen and renewable electricity to the Port’s fleet of 39 heavy forklift trucks and 12 heavy goods vehicles.
- Green Hydrogen will be sourced by a scalable green hydrogen production, storage and refuelling facility – the economics of which will be optimised by its integration with new solar and wind electricity generation capacity.
- The Hub will then be expanded to facilitate the decarbonisation of more than 800 heavy goods vehicles that enter Shoreham Port daily, and to provide fuel to port and coastal marine vessels.
That is all good stuff, but I do wonder, where the renewable electricity is going to come from.
In Further Thoughts On BP’s Successful INTOG Bid, I looked at BP’s plan for a 50 MW wind farm.
- It will be about twenty miles offshore from Aberdeen.
- With an appropriate electrolyser 50 MW of electricity would produce twenty tonnes of hydrogen per day.
- The electrolyser could be onshore or even offshore.
- The technology has all been developed.
Could H2Green be thinking of developing a similar hydrogen production facility?
Ecojet: Dale Vince Launches An Aviation Revolution
The title of this post is the same as that as this news story from Ecotricity.
This is the sub-heading.
The world’s first electric airline powered by renewable energy
These three paragraphs outline the project.
Ecotricity founder, Dale Vince, has announced the launch of Ecojet, the world’s first Electric Airline, powered by renewable energy. The move marks the beginning of an aviation revolution by making net-zero, emission-free air travel possible for the first time.
Ecojet’s fleet will comprise conventional planes retrofitted with hydrogen-electric powertrains. Once converted, the aircraft will operate with the same power output as before, but with a one-hundred percent reduction in CO2 emissions.
The decision to repurpose old planes rather than build new models from scratch will save 90,000 tonnes of carbon per year. The only byproduct will be water, which can be captured and released into the lower atmosphere to avoid the harmful effects of contrails.
These ae my thoughts.
The Aircraft
The news story contains pictures of two aircraft; a de Havilland Canada Twin Otter and a 737 or A320 variant.
- It also says that hydrogen-electric powertrains will be used.
- ZeroAvia in partnership with Cranfield Aerospace are developing such a powertrain and I suspect they could have one certified by 2025.
This would be used in the Twin Otter.
But what about 737 or A320 variant?
Airbus are already proposing the ZEROe Turbofan, which appears to be based on an improved A320 neo.
But the image on the news story looks more like a Boeing 737 from the wing-tips.
This article on the IET web site, which is entitled Airbus And Boeing To Embrace Hydrogen From Mid-2030s, indicates that it will be the mid-2030s before hydrogen twinjets of this size are in service.
This paragraph from the news story indicates his philosophy about the aircraft.
Short-term, to secure routes and a license from the Civil Aviation Authority, Ecojet will initially launch using conventionally fuelled planes. Ecojet will launch with two different sizes of turboprop aircraft (a 19-seat aircraft and a 70-seat aircraft). These aircraft will be retrofitted with the hydrogen-electric powertrains as they become approved for service by the CAA – the first retrofits will take place in 2025, one year after the commencement of flights.
Note.
- The news story clearly states that two types of aircraft will be used; a 19-seat turboprop and 70-seat turboprop.
- So the second picture of a Boeing 737 had nothing to do with the news story.
- They will be retrofitted with hydrogen-electric powertrains, when they have been certified.
- Flights are planned to start next year.
It looks a very canny philosophy, as Ecojet will be able to prove the route with aircraft running on traditional fuels or sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and only switch to hydrogen, when the hydrogen-electric powertrains are proven, certified and installed, and the hydrogen infrastructure is in place.
The Smaller Aircraft
The first picture in the news story is of a de Havilland Canada Twin Otter.
- This aircraft accommodates 19-20 passengers.
- It has two turboprop engines.
- Production started in 1966 and it is still ongoing.
- Nearly a thousand have been built, so plenty of nearly-new examples will be available for refurbishment and conversion.
- Loganair operate three aircraft in Scotland.
It looks fairly certain, that Ecojet’s 19-seat aircraft will be a Twin Otter.
The Larger Aircraft
Possibilities would include these aircraft.
- ATR-72 – 72 seats
- de Havilland Canada Dash 8 – > 50 seats
Note.
- Both aircraft are still in production.
- In ZeroAvia To Bring Zero-Emissions Flight To Sweden, I talk about how ZeroAvia have sold their hydrogen-electric powertrains to Swedish ATR-72 operator; Braathens and are targeting Dash 8 operators.
- In Universal Hydrogen Successfully Completes First Flight Of Hydrogen Regional Airliner, I talk about Universal Hydrogen’s successful progress in selling hydrogen-electric powertrains for ATR-72s and Dash 8s. The first flight of their system was in an ATR-72.
It looks to me, that Dale Vince has a choice of two 70-seat aircraft and hydrogen-electric powertrains from two manufacturers; ZeroAvia and Universal Hydrogen.
In Monte To Purchase 100 FC Aircraft Drives From ZeroAvia, I talk about how Monte Aircraft Leasing have done a deal with ZeroAvia to lease ZeroAvia’s hydrogen-electric powertrains to regional airlines.
Has Dale Vince done a deal with Monte Aircraft Leasing for his aircraft?
- Monte Aircraft Leasing and ZeroAvia would get an eco-celebrity customer, who could even be the launch customer.
- Ecojet’s aircraft would all have similar ZeroAvia hydrogen-electric powertrains, although the size might be different.
- Dale Vince would only be sharing the risk, if the technology was a dog.
- De Havilland Canada and/or ATR will see how the passengers like zero-carbon flight.
There is also, one of aviation’s most powerful companies close to the deal, as Airbus own half of ATR.
Airbus are developing the hydrogen-powered ZEROe Turboprop, which is shown in this Airbus image.
Note.
- It looks very much like an improved ATR-72.
- It has more extreme propellers and probably better aerodynamics.
- Airbus might like to persuade Ecojet to use ATR-72s as their 70-seat airliner.
- Information from an operator of hydrogen-powered airliners would be very valuable to Airbus.
I wouldn’t be surprised to see Ecojet lease some nearly new ATR-72s.
Would Airbus Fit ZeroAvia Hydrogen-Electric Powertrains In The ZEROe Turboprop?
This page on the Airbus website is entitled ZEROe.
In a section, which is entitled Hydrogen Propulsion To Power Future Aircraft, this is said.
All three ZEROe concepts are hybrid-hydrogen aircraft. They are powered by hydrogen combustion through modified gas turbine engines. Liquid hydrogen is used as fuel for combustion with oxygen.
In addition, hydrogen fuel cells create electrical power that complements the gas turbine, resulting in a highly efficient hybrid-electric propulsion system. All of these technologies are complementary, and the benefits are additive.
In 2022, we launched our ZEROe demonstrator with the aim to test hydrogen combustion technology on an A380 multimodal platform. Through future ground and flight testing, we expect to achieve a mature technology readiness level for a hydrogen-combustion propulsion system by 2025.
Note.
- Airbus state they are using modified gas turbine engines.
- Airbus also talk about using fuel cells to create electrical power that complements the gas turbines.
- Could the hydrogen fuel cells be used to power the aircraft’s systems, like avionics, control systems, air-conditioning and the hydrogen system for the main engine?
- This concept of effectively a hydrogen auxiliary power unit, might be a more efficient way of using the hydrogen, which either gives longer range or a smaller fuel tank.
- In The ZEROe Demonstrator Has Arrived, I talk about the ZEROe Demonstrator, which is a modified Airbus A 380.
Did the adding of hydrogen fuel cells to the ZEROe aircraft, lead to the concept of a hydrogen-powered auxiliary power unit, that I talked about in Airbus To Trial In-flight Auxiliary Power Entirely Generated By Hydrogen?
It looks to me, that Airbus have developed their own simple concept of powering the aircraft.
I doubt they will need ZeroAvia’s technology.
But.
- Aircraft manufacturers like Airbus generally fit the best and most suited engines they can find in their aircraft.
- The Wikipedia entry for ZeroAvia says that the prototype hydrogen-electric powertrain is in the cabin, consisting of two fuel cells and a lithium-ion battery for peak power.
- ZeroAvia have powerful shareholders like Amazon, Bill Gates and Royal Dutch Shell.
- ZeroAvia have also received grants from the UK Government.
I wouldn’t be surprised to learn, that Airbus have taken a long hard look at ZeroAvia’s technology.
After all, ZeroAvia could probably build a hydrogen fuel cell power pack, that would meet Airbus’s needs for a hydrogen-powered auxiliary power unit.
Remember too, that many fleets of aircraft have been updated with new engines for decades and I don’t think Airbus would mind ZeroAvia giving a new zero-carbon lease of life to the hundreds of ATR-72s in service around the world.
Surely, a successful hydrogen-powered ATR-72 is only going to create more interest in airlines buying ZEROe Turboprops.
All the converted aircraft will still need support from ATR.
Both the converted and new aircraft will need hydrogen refuelling services, so could the two aircraft use a common standard.
Airbus and ZeroAvia would appear to have several common interests.
Ecojet’s Core Route
This is a paragraph from the news story on the Ecotricity web site.
Dale has partnered with experienced pilot Brent Smith and a team of aviation specialists to set up Ecojet. Flights across the UK will commence in early 2024, starting with the Edinburgh to Southampton route, and expanding to mainland Europe shortly after, with long-haul flights planned for the future.
Note.
- The ATR-72 has a range of 949 miles, which is more than adequate for Southampton and Edinburgh, which is just over 350 miles.
- Diagonal journeys in the UK are often the most passenger-unfriendly by rail and tend to use diesel trains.
- Southampton Airport has good road and rail connections, with the terminal less than a minute from the station.
- Edinburgh Airport has good road and tram connections, with rail connections needing a short journey on the tram.
- Southampton Airport has flights to the Channel Islands, Ireland and Schiphol.
- Edinburgh Airport has a comprehensive service from major airlines and low-cost carriers, and several flights to destinations in the North of Scotland and on the Islands.
I think that it is a well-chosen core route for their 70-seat aircraft.
Which Routes Will Ecojet Fly With The Twin Otters?
Consider.
- My Scottish friends tell me that flying to the Scottish Islands, like the Hebrides, Orkney and Shetland is expensive.
- The growth of the Scottish wind power industry will mean, that more capacity is needed to serve the North of Scotland and the Islands.
- Tourism to the North of Scotland and the Islands is on the up.
- There will not be a shortage of green electricity to produce green hydrogen.
- The North of Scotland isn’t short of airports.
- The Twin Otter has a surprisingly long range on aviation fuel and I suspect, that a hydrogen version would be designed to have a similar range.
- The longest flight needed would probably be Edinburgh and Sumburgh, which is about 280 miles, which should be well within the range of a Twin Otter.
- I suspect that hydrogen refuelling could be easily provided at enough airports, to support hydrogen-powered airliners.
- I am sure, that the Twin Otters could be used on a network of zero-carbon flights from Edinburgh to the North of Scotland and the Islands.
- A zero-carbon airline would help Scotland’s net-zero ambitions.
There is certainly a need for another airline to connect Edinburgh to the North of Scotland and the Islands and the infrastructure could be upgraded to support a hydrogen-based zero-carbon airline.
Could Ecojet build a similar network at Southampton, that served the Channel Islands, Southern Ireland and Northern France?
Conclusion
There’s a lot more to this venture, than there appears at first sight.
O wish Vince and his partners well, but as a coeliac, I’ll skip the food.
Would A Dual-Fuel Boeing 747 Or Airbus A380 Save Carbon?
This press release from Airbus is entitled The ZEROe Demonstrator Has Arrived.
This is the introductory paragraph.
2022 marks a new and exciting phase for ZEROe – Airbus’ ambition to develop the world’s first zero-emission commercial aircraft by 2035. The multi-year demonstrator programme has officially been launched with the objective to test a variety of hydrogen technologies both on the ground and in the air.
The ZEROe demonstrator will be the first Airbus A 380 aircraft and it is shown in this Airbus visualisation.
Note.
- The four hydrogen tanks in the fuselage.
- The fifth engine mounted in a pod on the fuselage.
- There’s certainly lots of space inside the fuselage for more hydrogen tanks and test and monitoring equipment.
Take away the fifth engine and the test equipment and this aircraft becomes an A380 with two fuel systems; hydrogen and aviation fuel.
Consider.
- Suppose two engines were hydrogen-capable and two were normal engines running on aviation fuel or Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF).
- I don’t think it is impossible to build engines that could run on both hydrogen and Sustainable Aviation Fuel.
- All aircraft use fuel at a higher rate, during take-off and climbing.
- Do long non-stop flights use less fuel, than ones with stops?
- As altitude increases, air resistance decreases.
- Aircraft could fly slower to reduce the fuel needed, as they did in the oil crises in the last century.
- Generally, the most economical way to fly a route, is to climb to maximum altitude, fly level until descending into the destination.
- The aircraft would not carry cargo in the belly-hold.
- There could be a hydrogen-powered APU, as I wrote about in Airbus To Trial In-flight Auxiliary Power Entirely Generated By Hydrogen.
- This document from IATA says that in its liquid form, contains about 2.5 times more energy per kilogram than kerosene.
- The Boeing 747 first flew in 1969 and the Airbus A 380 in 2005, so these aircraft are well known.
I just wonder, if it is possible to work out a flight profile, that would enable these aircraft to fly very long non-stop routes?
- All four engines would be used for take-off.
- An appropriate power setting would be used for the cruise and the descent.
- There would be large numbers of 747s and A 380s in good condition to convert.
- The plane would land with little or no hydrogen left.
The hydrogen used would cut the carbon footprint of the flight.
Italian Firm To Build Green Hydrogen Platform For CrossWind’s Hollandse Kust Noord
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on offshoreWIND.biz.
This is the sub-heading.
CrossWind has awarded Rosetti Marino an Engineering, Procurement, Construction, and Installation and Commissioning (EPCIC) contract for an offshore green hydrogen production and storage plant, located within CrossWind’s Hollandse Kust Noord offshore wind farm in the Netherlands.
These paragraphs describe the platform.
Rosetti Marino said that the pilot plant, called the Baseload Power Hub and fully integrated into an offshore wind farm, is a world first.
The plant on a MegaWatt scale will convert excess wind energy to green hydrogen through an electrolyser and store it as green hydrogen that can be converted to electricity when needed via a fuel cell.
It will also include battery storage for shorter-term power storage.
It looks like they’ve got all angles covered.
I suspect that we’ll see more platforms like this, as they should make the output of a wind farm much more controllable.
A Spelling Mistake From Hydrogen Fuel News
This clipping from Hydrogen Fuel News contains one of the best spelling mistakes I’ve seen in a long time.
It wasn’t auto-suggestion, as the only lady in the article, is very demurely dressed.
Discover How Greater Brighton Is Championing The Transition To Hydrogen
The title of this post, is the same as that of this news item from Brighton & Hove Council.
This is the introduction to the news item.
Local experts will present the strengths and opportunities for developing the hydrogen economy in the Sussex area at an online launch on 11 July.
Register for the online launch of the Hydrogen Strategy
Developed by local company Ricardo, on behalf of Hydrogen Sussex, the Greater Brighton Hydrogen Strategy shows that with the right focus, collaboration and action, the region has real potential to stand out within the UK hydrogen landscape and gain economic and environmental benefits.
Brighton & Hove Council seem to be taking a sensible approach, but then they do have one of the world’s most respected hydrogen companies; Ricardo, a few miles to the West.
This section outlines, how Brighton is embracing hydrogen.
Hydrogen is a fast-growing sector with the potential to enable decarbonisation, support national energy security, create green growth and improve air quality.
The Greater Brighton and wider Sussex area has already broken ground in the Hydrogen industry, with advanced engineering, education and research being very well represented. Local initiatives include:
-
- Hydrogen buses: Metrobus has just launched 15 hydrogen buses to serve the Crawley and Gatwick area, with a further 34 hydrogen buses joining their fleet over the next 18 months.
- Shoreham Port: The port is working with partners H2Green to create a Green Energy Hub, producing green hydrogen in a multi-megawatt electrolysis plant – initially for Shoreham Port, and then supplying green hydrogen across the region.
- Maritime sector: Sussex’s engineering companies are at the forefront of hydrogen decarbonisation in the maritime sector. Bramble Energy, Cox Marine, Ceres Power and Ricardo are just some of the local companies which have received Government funding to tackle marine decarbonisation.
- Sussex and Brighton universities: The two universities in the area have PHD studies on innovations in the sector, with Brighton University partnering with companies to win government research funding.
- Worthing Crematorium: Could become the first in the world to trial a switch to 100% hydrogen. If testing is successful with cremator manufacturer DFW Europe, hydrogen technology will be brought over to Worthing Crematorium as early as spring 2024.
The region is already home to several hydrogen technology companies and has a strong capacity for innovation which could be developed to expand its engineering excellence.
That list looks fairly comprehensive.
Conclusion
Other towns, cities and regions in the UK, should look at what Brighton is doing, with respect to hydrogen.
Exploring London Bus Route 132
London Bus Route 132, is run by battery-electric buses and it the first in London to use opportunity charging.
These pictures show the route from North Greenwich to Bexleyheath Shopping Centre.
Note.
- These pictures were shot in two sections on the 3rd and the 6th of July 2023.
- The break was at Eltham station.
- Some sections of the route had a lot of cars.
- Some side roads were full of parked cars.
- There were large numbers of cars parked in front of houses.
There are my thoughts.
More will appear here over the next couple of days.
The Buses
The buses used on the route are Alexander Dennis Enviro400EV, which are built on a BYD Auto chassis.
They have a range of 160 miles.
The Route
The route has several inclines both ways and I estimate it is just under ten miles.
At North Woolwich, the bus didn’t appear to have a charge, but I can’t be sure.
But it disappear at Bexleyheath Shopping Centre and I was certain it went for a charge.
So is the operational philosophy to fill, the bus up overnight and then top the battery up every time, that it needs it at Bexleyheath.
A Comparison With A Similar Route In Birmingham That Has Hydrogen-Powered Buses
As the bus ran between North Woolwich and Bexleyheath Shopping Centre, I was comparing it, with the trip, I made across Birmingham, in hydrogen-powered buses, that I wrote about in Riding Birmingham’s New Hydrogen-Powered Buses.
Both were quality buses, but I felt the hydrogen bus had more power.
Opportunity Charging At Bexleyheath
If, buses need to be charged at the Bexleyheath Shopping Centre end of the route, where will they go?
This Google Map shows Bexleyheath Bus Garage in relation to the Shopping Centre.
Note.
- Bexleyheath Bus Garage is in the North-East corner of the map.
- It looks like it shares a site with Bexley Fire Station and Barnehurst Ambulance station.
- So the garage is well located for any future lithium-ion battery fires.
- In the middle of the map at the bottom, is Bexleyheath Clock Tower, in the middle of the town centre.
- I estimate it’s less than two kilometres between Bexleyheath Bus Garage and the Shopping Centre.
This Google Map shows a close-up of the Western side of the Bexleyheath Bus Garage.
Note.
- The two buses parked by the side of the garage.
- Behind them a white arm reaches over towards the road.
- This is the charger and buses connect using a pantograph on the roof.
It could be an All-In-One Fast Charging Station AIO from Furrer+Frey.
The Electrical Connection At Bexleyheath Bus Garage
Consider.
- The bus garage shares a site with a fire station and an ambulance station, which surely must need a reliable power source.
- This is London’s first application of opportunity charging.
- There are improvements constantly happening to London’s struggling power network.
- It is a large site and I suspect there is space for a battery to boost power.
I would assume that Transport for London wouldn’t have chosen a bus garage with a dodgy power supply.
Could The Charger Be Solar-Powered?
This Google Map shows the roof of Bexleyheath Bus Garage.
Note.
- It appears to be a square with a length of about six buses.
- It looks rather dirty.
I suspect that the roof could be replaced with a modern solar roof.
Hydrogen Or Electric
This article on RouteOne is entitled Enviro400FCEV Hydrogen Bus Fleet For Liverpool Debuts.
This paragraph describes the performance.
Alexander Dennis has chosen the heavy-duty variant of VEDS. It is designed to deliver up to 410kW of power, but the vehicle OEM says that in the Enviro400FCEV, output is limited to 350kW. Such an approach will maximise fuel economy while still enabling a high road speed and good hill climbing ability. Expected range is up to 300 miles.
So the range on hydrogen is nearly doubled.
Wrightbus’s outwardly similar electric and hydrogen buses have ranges of 200 and 280 miles, but filling times of 2.5 hours and 8 minutes.
The problem with hydrogen in London, is that the Mayor and Transport for London, don’t appear to have a hydrogen policy.
But I think, that hydrogen will win out in cities and areas, where hydrogen can be supplied.
I also believe that hydrogen has other advantages.
- There is likely to be significant progress in improving hydrogen-powered heavy vehicles.
- Hydrogen internal combustion engines are coming and could promise more affordable hydrogen buses.
- Better and more affordable methods to create green hydrogen are being developed.
- Some existing diesel buses will be able to be converted to buses powered by hydrogen internal combustion engines.
- Lithium-ion batteries have a high environmental footprint.
Hydrogen is also likely to be the fuel of choice for heavy trucks.
Thoughts On The Future Of Orkney
This article on the BBC is entitled Orkney Votes To Explore ‘Alternative Governance‘
This is the sub-heading.
Orkney councillors have voted to investigate alternative methods of governance amid deep frustrations over funding and opportunities.
These paragraphs outline the story.
Council leader James Stockan said the islands had been “held down” and accused the Scottish and UK governments of discrimination.
His motion led to media speculation that Orkney could leave the UK or become a self-governing territory of Norway.
It was supported by 15 votes to six.
It means council officers have been asked to publish a report to Orkney’s chief executive on options of governance.
This includes looking at the “Nordic connections” of the archipelago and crown dependencies such as Jersey and Guernsey.
A further change which would see the revival of a consultative group on constitutional reform for the islands was accepted without the need for a vote.
My Thoughts On The Economic Future Of The Islands
The economic future of Orkney looks good.
Tourism and the traditional industries are on the up, but the islands could play a large part in renewable energy.
The West of Orkney offshore wind farm, which will be a 2 GW wind farm with fixed foundations, is being developed and a large hydrogen production hub at Flotta is being proposed, along with the development of a large quay in Scapa Flow for the assembly of floating wind farms.
The West of Orkney wind farm could be the first of several.
If the future wind farms are further from shore, they will most likely be based on floating technology, with the turbines and their floats assembled in Scapa Flow, from components shipped in from mainland UK and Europe.
Political Future
With a good financial future assured, I believe that Orkney will be able to choose where its political future lies. It could be a Crown Dependency or join Norway.
Whichever way it goes, it could be an island that effectively prints money, by turning electricity into hydrogen and shipping it to countries like Germany, The Netherlands, Poland and Sweden!
From a UK point of view, a Crown Dependency could be a favourable move.
Would Shetland follow the same route?
Offshore Hydrogen Production And Storage
Orkney is not a large archipelago and is just under a thousand square kilometres in area.
It strikes me, that rather than using up scarce land to host the large electrolysers and hydrogen storage, perhaps it would be better, if hydrogen production and storage was performed offshore.
Aker Northern Horizons
In Is This The World’s Most Ambitious Green Energy Solution?, I talk about Northern Horizons, which is an ambitious project for a 10 GW floating wind farm, which would be built a hundred kilometres to the North-East of Shetland, that would be used to produce hydrogen on Shetland.
Other companies will propose similar projects to the West and East of the Northern islands.
This map shows the sea, that could be carpeted with armadas of floating wind farms.
Consider.
- There are thousands of square miles of sea available.
- As the crow flies, the distance between Bergen Airport and Sumburgh Airport in Shetland is 226 miles.
- A hundred mile square is 10,000 square miles or 2590 square kilometres.
- In ScotWind Offshore Wind Leasing Delivers Major Boost To Scotland’s Net Zero Aspirations, I calculated that the floating wind farms of the Scotwind leasing round had an energy density of 3.5 MW per km².
- It would appear that a hundred mile square could generate, as much as nine GW of green electricity.
How many hundred mile squares can be fitted in around the UK’s Northern islands?
Lloyd’s Register Issues World’s First Rules For Hydrogen Fuel
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Hydrogen Central.
These are the first two paragraphs.
Lloyd’s Register issues world’s first rules for hydrogen fuel.
Liam Blackmore, Lead Specialist at Lloyd’s Register, is a busy man. He has led the technical policy writing of many of the class society’s decarbonisation rules. Horizons spoke to him in late April 2023, just a few weeks after LR had published the world’s first maritime rules covering hydrogen as a fuel.
This would appear to be a very sensible move by Lloyds Register, which sets down the rules for using hydrogen fuel on ships.
But surely, if you follow these rules, then you will able to get insurance for your ship.
The Anonymous Widower 