Battery electric cars are a better choice for reducing emissions than fuel cell vehicles, Stanford study finds | Stanford News

Battery electric cars are a better choice for reducing emissions than fuel cell vehicles, Stanford study finds Electric vehicles come in two flavors: plug-in cars with rechargeable batteries, and fuel cell vehicles that convert hydrogen gas into clean electricity. A key question for policymakers is, which transportation technology cuts total emissions at the lowest cost – batteries or fuel cells? Beyond transportation, could hydrogen technology also provide clean energy for heating and lighting buildings, as some research suggests? The new study is the first to address both questions. Many communities would be better off investing in electric vehicles that run on batteries instead of hydrogen fuel cells, in part because the hydrogen infrastructure provides few additional energy benefits for the community besides clean transportation. That’s according to a study in the November issue of the journal Energy by scientists at Stanford University and the Technical University of Munich (TUM). They compared cars that run on batteries versus hydrogen fuel cells in a hypothetical future where the cost of electric vehicles is more affordable. “Studies such as these are needed to identify the lowest cost and most efficient pathways to deep decarbonization of the global energy system,” added study co-author Sally Benson, a professor of energy resources engineering at Stanford and director of GCEP. See http://ift.tt/2fR0UfM