HYBRIDS: waiting for the bus

This fall, a hybrid-electric fuel cell transit bus will begin
plying the streets of Columbia, including a route on the University campus.

The 37-passenger bus, part of the Federal Transit Administration’s Fuel Cell Bus Program, is built of fiber composites and is five tons lighter than a regular transit bus. Powered by two 16kW fuel cells that will continuously charge a battery pack, the bus’ performance will be measured for acceleration, braking, and operating range during its one year of operation in Columbia.

Tom Davis, a Carolina chemical engineering professor, will help collect data on the bus to see how it performs. The goal is to develop a bus that will double the fuel efficiency of a comparable diesel-powered transit bus while achieving the same or better performance measures.

“Columbia was chosen for this demonstration project because of its heat, humidity, and hills—all challenges to a fuel-cell equipped bus,” Davis said. “We’ll have a GPS system on board, so we can determine how the bus is performing up and down hills and all along the route.”

Davis and other University researchers have consulted with the S.C. Research Authority, which is managing a project to build a $2.4 million hydrogen fueling station in Columbia for the demonstration bus. The station will also serve hydrogen-powered vehicles that will visit the city in April 2009 when the National Hydrogen Association holds its annual meeting in Columbia. The cost of the fueling station is being funded by the State Hydrogen Infrastructure Fund.

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