ITM Power has unveiled a hydrogen refuelling station and a hydrogen-powered car which could revolutionise commuting while cutting fuel costs and CO2 emissions.

The conventional petrol-engined Ford-Focus, which has completed successful urban commuting trials, has been converted to run on hydrogen, which burns without emitting CO2, and could ultimately reduce drivers’ dependence on fossil fuels.

In addition, ITM Power has also revealed a hydrogen home refuelling station capable of producing the gas from water and electricity. The station overcomes one of the fundamental stumbling blocks to hydrogen economy – the lack of hydrogen refuelling infrastructure and utility supply network.

It has taken scientists and chemists at the company’s Sheffield research base eight years to create a low-cost means of manufacturing hydrogen. It’s patented electrolyser-based refuelling station uses a low-cost polymer which dispenses with the need for expensive platinum and can be manufactured at one per cent of the cost of traditional membrane materials.

The result is a hydrogen production system small enough to be used in a home or business, which can generate the gas from a supply of water and off-peak or renewable electricity – power created by wind, wave, solar or nuclear energy. The stored hydrogen could then be used to fuel converted cars or provide power for domestic or commercial purposes.

ITM selected the Ford Focus because it is one of the Europe’s top selling models. In its converted form, it is effectively a bi-fuel vehicle, capable of being switched back to petrol if the hydrogen supply is exhausted. The demonstration vehicle can travel 25 miles on a single recharge of hydrogen from the refuelling station, allowing it to complete most average commuter journeys without the need for the back-up petrol supply. If the hydrogen is compressed, the range can be extended to 100 miles.

Although the initial demonstration vehicle is a car, vans and trucks will also be able to use the new fuel system to give commercial vehicle operators huge potential cost savings on delivery journey’s as well as further reducing CO2 emissions.

ITM Power says further research and current engine and fuel-saving developments could well double the car’s range and the shape of the standard pressurised hydrogen tank fitted to the demonstration vehicle could be engineered to maximise space.

The home refuelling station, test production of which is already underway at ITM Power’s Sheffield factory, underlines the potential for the generation of hydrogen both at home and in the workplace. The company has already established a showcase ‘hydrogen apartment’ at its Sheffield facility where hydrogen has is used for heating, cooking and to operate a fridge, while a hydrogen internal combustion generator converts the gas back into electricity to provide power for general lighting and to operate a television, computer and DVD player.