Many people are interested in a hydrogen vehicle after Kathmandu University brought in to test hydrogen fuel, triggering discourse that it could become an alternative to petroleum vehicles.
Most of the vehicle manufacturers have introduced lithium-ion battery-powered vehicles in the market as an alternative to petroleum vehicles.
Although small vehicles are suitable for running on batteries, new fuels are being tested because more batteries need to be kept for buses and trucks.
Big companies like Japan's Toyota, Korea's Hyundai, India's Tata are testing hydrogen fuel. Hydrogen vehicles are a new technology and are still more expensive than electric vehicles.
Hydrogen gas is stored after separating oxygen from water. Hence, refueling in vehicles is expensive. However, Kathmandu University says that Nepal can make a big contribution to national the economy by producing hydrogen, just like Arab countries get rich by selling petroleum products.
Biraj Singh Thapa, the Head of Green Hydrogen Lab under Kathmandu University (KU), says that since hydrogen can be extracted easily from the water and electricity that Nepal has, Nepal should increase investment in it. Nepal Oil Corporation is providing financial support to KU to study hydrogen.
Even though KU has introduced hydrogen-powered cars in Nepal, there is no law to allow them to ply the roads in the country. The Nepal government has a system to give number plates to vehicles that run on batteries along with diesel petrol. But the law of Nepal does not recognize hydrogen-powered vehicles. The government has not even made any regulations regarding hydrogen so far.
In India, the Indian Oil Corporation has operated hydrogen buses. A bus with four cylinders of hydrogen can travel 350 km easily. It takes about 10 minutes to fill out the bus tank. IOC has mentioned that it takes about 50 units of electricity to make 1 kg of hydrogen from water.
Tata Motors has set up a hydrogen plant in Pune, India, stating that the fuel of future commercial vehicles could be hydrogen.
We believe hydrogen is the fuel of the future. "Especially for commercial vehicles," says Giris Wagh, the executive director of Tata Motors, "we have taken a step forward in exploring new technologies and green mobility."
Along with Tata Motors, Mahindra and Mahindra and Ashok Leyland have announced the production of hydrogen-powered vehicles.
These are hydrogen powered cars
Toyota unveiled its first hydrogen-powered vehicle in 2014. The second-generation Mirai car powered by a hydrogen fuel cell, manufactured by Toyota, is on the road. A sedan car can run up to 650 km on a full refill. The maximum power of the vehicle is 152 BHP and it generates 335 Nm of torque.
Another hydrogen car is Hyundai's NEXO. The Korean company Hyundai launched the NEXO in 2018. Once the car is filled out with hydrogen, it can travel more than 650 km. KU has introduced Hyundai's 2019 NEXO in Nepal. It generates 163 PS of power and 400 Nm of torque. NEXO vehicles are running in Korea, America, UK and other countries.
Honda, Mercedes-Benz and BMW have also produced hydrogen cars. BMW is building the iX5. The vehicle is said to cover 300 miles and 118 km/h on a single refill. Honda aims to launch the CRV hydrogen fuel car in 2024.
New and startup companies are also studying hydrogen cell vehicles. The American company Hypersonic launched the XP-1 sports car in 2020. The vehicle developed as a super car has a range of 1000 miles. Likewise, NAMX HUV is planning to launch its HUV model by 2026.
