China has achieved an industrial breakthrough and large-scale application of China’s hydrogen industry, opening a new chapter in the development of the hydrogen industry chain in the capital city of Beijing, Chinese officials said.
Wu said that 312 hydrogen-fueled vehicles, which emit only pure water, are now in use in the Beijing and Yanqing competition areas, and a total of 42.04 tons of hydrogen has been used in the two competition areas since they opened Feb. 2 to Feb. 14.
The main supplier of hydrogen energy for the games, Beijing Huanyu Jinghui City Gas Technology Co., produces and extracts hydrogen through “green electricity” derived from photovoltaic and wind power, Zhang Yan, deputy general manager of the company, told Global Times.
One of the largest hydrogen buses in operation was jointly developed by Chinese automaker Foton and Japan’s largest carmaker Toyota, as well as a number of Chinese hydrogen battery and engine developers.
The 12-meter bus, called the Ouhui, avoids 57.86 kilograms of carbon dioxide emissions every 100 kilometers. This leads to a reduction in daily carbon dioxide emissions of 115.72 kilograms, Liu Jihong, vice president of the AUV division of Foton Motor Group, told Global Times.
Liu said the company’s research and development team overcame technological challenges, including starting cars in extremely cold weather conditions, slippery roads due to snow and ice and steep slopes.
He added that the company has also created China’s first integrated “U-degree” heat management technology, which is capable of collecting waste heat and converting it into internal heating and power systems for cars to defrost and clean.
Chinese experts assure that the Winter Olympics, emphasizing the concept of “green games” and “sustainable development,” will usher in a golden era for the development of the hydrogen industry in Beijing. Wu said the capital aims to create a “self-innovative and coordinatedly developed” industrial cluster to produce key parts and equipment for hydrogen vehicles by 2025.
