Ilaria Rosella Pagliaro With portable hydrogen cartridges, Toyota aims to revolutionize the mobility of the future. An innovative solution that promises quick recharges and domestic uses
©Toyota
But already, Toyota contemplates a brilliant idea for how mobility will be in the future: portable hydrogen cartridges, resembling huge batteries, that promise to refuel a car in a few seconds. This technology, that the Japanese giant will show at the Japan Mobility Bizweek, tends to make every stop to refuel faster than those requested nowadays by electric vehicles.
In addition, Toyota foresees hydrogen-powered applications for homes and emergency appliances, taking the concept of “mobility” even beyond just four wheels.
How they work
Portable hydrogen cartridges are designed to provide a fast and safe way of powering vehicles and home devices. Each cartridge contains compressed hydrogen that can be quickly inserted and replaced like a battery. All of these cartridges are light and compact, easy to carry, and can be used for car refueling or entertaining appliances in a household. Regarding this process, it is in the interest of the Toyota Company to create such an infrastructure where these cartridges could easily be distributed and recharged, bringing hydrogen into everyday life.
What is peculiar with these hydrogen cartridges is that they would not just be for cars but part of a wider ecosystem where hydrogen could meet our everyday lives well inside our homes à la today’s home delivery services. This technology reduces the time it takes to refuel quickly compared to electric cars. Ambitious though it might be, Toyota remains convinced of the model’s sustainability, mainly if the hydrogen is produced with renewable sources.
Is hydrogen really a green alternative?
The company, Toyota, however views hydrogen as key in the fight against climate change because, upon its combustion, it emits just water. But the question of whether hydrogen is, in fact, a sustainable alternative remains open, considering that there are huge problems that are apparent in its large-scale production and distribution. Other companies, not excluding Hyundai and BMW, are working on their different versions involving hydrogen. This can only be an indication of growing interest in alternatives to conventional batteries.
Source: Toyota
