Hydrogen will play an important role in developing sustainable transportation in the United States, because in the future it may be produced in virtually unlimited quantities using renewable resources. Hydrogen has been used effectively in a number of internal combustion engine vehicles as pure hydrogen or mixed with natural gas and in a growing number of demonstration fuel cell vehicles. Hydrogen and oxygen from air fed into a proton exchange membrane fuel cell stack produces electricity to power an electric automobile without producing harmful emissions.

The challenges ahead lie in producing hydrogen in a renewable and efficient manner, storing and transporting great quantities of hydrogen, building a hydrogen fueling infrastructure and lowering the high costs of producing fuel cells.

Chicago Area Clean Cities has a demonstration hydrogen fuel cell car that produces its own hydrogen and oxygen using electricity, then runs on that hydrogen and oxygen.

For more information on hydrogen, visit www.afdc.energy.gov/afdc/fuels/hydrogen.html.