The cutting-edge fuel cell mid-power stack developed by the Wuhan-based Dongfeng Motor Co was successfully started in Shanghai at minus 20C -- without the need for an auxiliary heat source, according to officials at the Wuhan Economic & Technological Development Zone.
Officials said this was landmark moment for the fuel cell stack -- called the H2Core-50 -- marking the point where Dongfeng has had mastered the cold start design and start-up strategy for fuel cell stacks.
They said this has laid the foundation for the commercial application of fuel cells and will promote the development of fuel cell technology in Dongfeng and the automotive industry to a new level.
Fuel cell vehicles use hydrogen as fuel, with only water emissions. This makes them clean and environmentally friendly, with a long cruising range -- making them one of the strategic directions for the future development of automobiles.
However, the start of a sub-zero fuel cell stack without an auxiliary heat source was a common technical problem facing the automotive industry.
Officials said this not only restricted the development of fuel cell technology, but also restricted the commercial application of hydrogen fuel cells.
The test stack was independently developed by the R & D team at the Dongfeng Technology Center who assembled the functional prototype at the Dongfeng New Energy Park Automation pilot line.
The rated power of the sample stack is 55kW and the volume power density is 3.1kW/L.
