Technology Acceleration: Fuel Cell Evaluations

Leslie Eudy National Renewable Energy Laboratory May 21, 2020

DOE Hydrogen and Fuel Cells Program 2019 Annual Merit Review and Peer Evaluation Meeting

Project ID # ta013

This presentation does not contain any proprietary, confidential, or otherwise restricted information. Overview

Timeline and Budget Barriers • Project start date: 09/01/03 • Lack of current fuel cell vehicle • FY19 DOE funding: $150K (bus) performance and durability data • FY20 planned DOE funding: • Lack of current hydrogen fueling $150K infrastructure performance and • Total DOE funds received to availability data date: $4.4M (over 18 years) Partners • Transit fleets: Operational data, fleet experience • Manufacturers: Vehicle specs, data, and review • Fuel providers: Fueling data and review

NREL | 2 Relevance

• Validate fuel cell (FCEB) performance and cost compared to DOE/DOT targets and conventional technologies • Document progress and “lessons learned” on implementing fuel cell systems in transit operations to address barriers to market acceptance

Current Targetsa Units 2016 Target Ultimate Target

Bus lifetime years/miles 12/500,000 12/500,000 Powerplant lifetime hours 18,000 25,000 Bus availability % 85 90 Roadcall frequency miles between 3,500/15,000 4,000/20,000 (bus/fuel cell system) roadcall hours per day/ Operation time 20/7 20/7 days per week Maintenance cost $/mile 0.75 0.40 miles per diesel Fuel economy 8 8 gallon equivalent Bus Cost $ 1,000,000 600,000

a Fuel Cell Technologies Program Record # 12012, Sept. 2012, http://www.hydrogen.energy.gov/pdfs/12012_fuel_cell_bus_targets.pdf

NREL | 3 Approach

Data Collection/Analysis Individual Site • Standard protocol Reports • Third-party analysis • Documents • Comparisons to performance by site conventional- • Builds database of technology in results similar service (diesel, • Reports posted on Annual FCEB Status CNG, diesel hybrid) NREL website Report (milestone)

CNG = compressed natural gas • Analysis comparing results from all sites • Assesses progress and needs for continued success • Provides input on annual status for DOE/DOT targets

NREL | 4 Approach: Data Summary for 2020

Selected specifications for FCEBs included in data summary Bus Manufacturer Van Hool ENC New Flyer Model A330 AFCB/Axcess Xcelsior/XHE40 Bus length/height 40 ft/136 in. 40 ft/140 in. 40 ft/130 in. Fuel cell OEM UTC Power Ballard Ballard Model PureMotion 120 FCvelocity–HD6 FCvelocity-HD85 Power (kW) 120 150 85 Siemens ELFA, Van BAE Systems Siemens ELFA, New Hybrid system Hool integration HybriDrive Flyer integration Design strategy Fuel cell dominant Fuel cell dominant Battery dominant Energy storage – OEM EnerDel A123 A123 Type Li-ion Li-ion Li-ion Capacity 17.4 kWh 11 kWh 100 kWh Altoona tested No Yes Yes

ENC = ElDorado National AFCB = American OEM = original equipment manufacturer NREL | 5 Approach: Data Summary for 2020 FCEB fleets included in data summary Transit Agency Abbreviation Location Bus OEM # Buses Data Included AC Transit ACT Oakland, CA Van Hool 13 Fuel cell hours only ENC 8 All, prototype bus removed Thousand SunLine Transit Agency SL Preliminary fuel economy Palms, CA New Flyer 5 data Orange County OCTA Santa Ana, CA ENC 1 All Transportation Authority Stark Area Regional SARTA Canton, OH ENC 5 All Transit Authority AC Transit SARTA

SunLine, New Flyer

OCTA SunLine, ENC

NREL | 6 Accomplishments and Progress Top Fuel Cell Powerplant Exceeds 32,000 Hours • Top fuel cell powerplant (FCPP) >32,000 hours • 12 FCPPs have surpassed DOE/DOT ultimate target

Total hours accumulated on each FCPP as of 3/1/2020 NREL | 7 Accomplishments and Progress FCEB Capital Costs Dropping

OEM estimate for a 40-bus order

DOE Ultimate Target

Newest FCEB order 2.8x lower cost compared to early demonstrations

NREL | 8 Accomplishments and Progress Reliability: Miles Between Roadcall (MBRC)

30,000

25,000 FC System MBRC

20,000

15,000 Miles

10,000

5,000 Bus MBRC

0

2016 Bus MBRC Target 2016 Bus FC System Target Ultimate Bus MBRC Target Ultimate Bus FC System Target

• Data from newer ENC buses • Meeting ultimate target at the end of the data period • Fuel cell system roadcalls are caused by balance of plant components, not stack issues

NREL | 9 Accomplishments and Progress Maintenance Cost by System 0.50 Tires • Cost for propulsion 0.45 General air system repairs 0.40 system repairs Axles, wheels, highest for FCEBs 0.35 and drive shaft 0.30 Lighting • Propulsion issues

0.25 HVAC include: 0.20 Frame, steering, – Cooling system 0.15 and suspension Cost ($/mi) System by Cost labor Brakes 0.10 – Low-voltage 0.05 PMI batteries 0.00 Propulsion-related FCEB CNG Diesel BEB – Fuel cell BOP

# buses: 14 14 10 12 Cab, body, and accessories

• Cumulative cost from in-service date BEB = battery electric bus BOP = balance of plant • Labor @ $50/h PMI = preventive maintenance inspection HVAC = heating, ventilation, and air conditioning NREL | 10 Accomplishments and Progress Propulsion Maintenance Cost by Sub-System

0.20 Exhaust • FC costs for FCEB 0.18 Hydraulic primarily labor 0.16

0.14 Electric drive/ • ESS cost for FCEBs Transmission 0.12 included in electric Fuel System 0.10 drive category Cooling 0.08 • Cooling costs 0.06 Cost ($/mi) System by Cost Air Intake primarily labor for 0.04 Cranking/ checking/topping 0.02 Charging off fluids 0.00 Electrical FCEB CNG Diesel BEB

# buses: 14 14 10 12 FC/Engine/ESS

• Cumulative cost from in-service date BEB = battery electric bus BOP = balance of plant • Labor @ $50/h ESS = energy storage system

NREL | 11 Accomplishments and Progress Maintenance Cost Trends Cumulative maintenance cost from start of service 0.60 Total Maintenance Cost 0.50

0.40

0.30 FCEB cost stabilizes over time 0.20 Cost per Mile Mile ($) Cost per 0.10

0.00

Months from start of service FCEB Diesel CNG (2008) CNG (2016) BEB 0.60 Propulsion System Maintenance Cost 0.50

0.40 Propulsion system costs for FCEB currently higher

0.30 than other technologies

0.20 Cost per Mile Mile ($) Cost per 0.10

0.00

Months from start of service FCEB Diesel CNG (2008) CNG (2016) BEB

NREL | 12 Accomplishments and Progress Maintenance Cost Trends Cumulative maintenance cost from start of service 10 Labor hours per 1,000 miles 9 FCEB costs driven by labor costs 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Labor hoursMile per 1000 0

Months from start of service FCEB Diesel CNG (2008) CNG (2016) BEB 0.60 Parts 0.50

0.40 Parts cost for FCEBs currently low because most of

0.30 the buses are sill under warranty

0.20 Cost per Mile Mile ($) Cost per 0.10

0.00

Months from start of service FCEB Diesel CNG (2008) CNG (2016) BEB

NREL | 13 Accomplishments and Progress Fuel Economy

10 120

9 110 8 100 7 6 90 5 80

4 70 3 60 2 50 1 Average hightemperature (F) Miles per diesel gallon equivalent gallon diesel per Miles 0 40 Jul-19 Oct-19 Jun-19 Jan-20 Nov-19 Dec-19 Aug-19 Sep-19 FCEB CNG Avg high temp • Preliminary data on new design FCEBs • Average fuel economy: 7.52 mi/kg, 8.52 mpdge • Meets DOE/DOT ultimate target

NREL | 14 Accomplishments and Progress: Responses to Previous Year Reviewers’ Comments

• Project should combine key data to generate insight into the total cost of ownership. – Response: NREL is evaluating how to incorporate this type of analysis in the future. • Provide data in more severe climates (hot and humid, extreme cold) – Response: As FCEBs are deployed in different locations, NREL will explore the potential to add those vehicles to the data collection and analysis. • Expand the scope to other emerging applications – NREL will be evaluating medium and heavy-duty fuel cell trucks as they are deployed.

NREL | 15 Collaboration and Coordination

• Transit agencies (1) provide data on buses, fleet experience, and training and (2) review reports – California: AC Transit, SunLine, OCTA • Manufacturers provide some data on buses and review reports – Bus OEMs: New Flyer, ElDorado National – Fuel cell OEMs: Ballard, Hydrogenics, US Hybrid – Hybrid system OEMs: BAE Systems, New Flyer • FTA provided funding to cover evaluations of both FCEBs and BEBs – funding ended in 2019 • Other organizations share information and analysis results – California Air Resources Board, Center for Transportation and the Environment, CALSTART

NREL | 16 Remaining Challenges and Barriers

• For technology acceleration and data collection project: – Continue data collection to track progress of newer-generation designs – Establish good relationships with additional transit agencies to add to the data set • For industry to commercialize FCEBs: – Deploy larger fleets: • Lower per-bus price: OEMs estimate ~$1M/bus for higher volumes • Incorporate training into current course work • Accelerate learning curve for staff • Add trained technicians to staff at local OEM support centers – Install hydrogen stations • High capital cost to install, but easier to scale up compared to battery fleet • Standardization: each installation is different, making it challenging to plan budget

NREL | 17 Proposed Future Work

• Remainder of FY 2020 – Data collection focused on new designs at three fleets: • SunLine, 5 New Flyer FCEBs, 1 battery dominant FCEB • OCTA, 10 New Flyer FCEBs • AC Transit, 10 New Flyer FCEBs – Complete the following data analyses/reports: • SunLine AFCB Report, May 2020 (final report for this design) • 2020 Annual Status Report, September 2020 – Analyze fuel cell truck projects • FY 2021 – Analyze and report on data from New Flyer FCEBs – Complete annual crosscutting analysis across sites Any proposed future work is subject to change based on funding levels. NREL | 18 Technology Transfer Activities

• Project provides non-biased evaluation of technology developed by industry • Project documents performance results and lessons learned to aid market in understanding needs for full commercialization – Manufacturers – Transit agencies – Policymaking organizations – Funding organizations • No technology (hardware/software) is developed through this project

NREL | 19 Summary: Progress Toward Targets

• Bus lifetime target: 12 years/ 500,000 miles o Multiple buses have reached 8 years in service • Powerplant lifetime: 25K hours ultimate target o Ultimate target met • Capital cost: $600K o New orders 2.8 times lower cost compared to early demo buses • Fuel economy/range: 8 mpg/300 miles o Preliminary data on new bus model meets target • Both FCEB U.S. models have completed Altoona testing • Increasing interest in the U.S. primarily driven by advantages over BEB technology: increased range, fast fueling, easier scale-up of infrastructure • Availability: 85% interim, 90% ultimate o Current data show FCEBs do not yet meet interim target (72%) • Operation cost: $0.75/mi interim, $0.40/mi ultimate o Current cost is slightly more than ultimate target, some buses still under warranty. Need to track cost for newest design after warranty ends.

NREL | 20 Thank You

www.nrel.gov

This work was authored by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, operated by Alliance for Sustainable Energy, LLC, for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) under Contract No. DE-AC36-08GO28308. Funding provided by U.S. DepartmentNREL is of a Energynational Office laboratory of Energy of Efficiency the U.S. and Department Renewable ofEnergy Energy, Fuel OfficeCell Technologies of Energy Office.Efficiency The views NREL is a national laboratory of the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency expressedand Renewable in the article Energy, do not necessarily operated represent by the Alliance the views for of Sustainable the DOE or the Energy, U.S. Government. LLC. The U.S. Governmentand Renewable retains andEnergy, the publisher, operated by by accepting the Alliance the article for Sustainable for publication, Energy, acknowledges LLC. that the U.S. Government retains a nonexclusive, paid-up, irrevocable, worldwide license to publish or reproduce the published form of this work, or allow others to do so, for U.S. Government purposes. Backup Slides Accomplishments and Progress Maintenance Cost: Parts and Labor

0.50 • Majority of FCEB cost is from 0.45 labor—troubleshooting and 0.40 training increase labor hours 0.35 • Parts costs are low while the 0.30 buses are under warranty 0.25 • BEBs out of warranty, some Cost ($/mi) 0.20 replacement parts are 0.15 expensive (DC-DC converter 0.10 >$14K) 0.05

0.00 FCEB CNG Diesel BEB • Cumulative cost from in-service date Parts Labor • Labor @ $50/h

NREL | 23 Accomplishments and Progress Maintenance Cost: Scheduled and Unscheduled

0.50 • Similar costs for scheduled 0.45 maintenance, with BEB the 0.40 lowest 0.35 • Diesel buses experiencing 0.30 issues with emissions 0.25 equipment as they age

Cost ($/mi) 0.20 • BEBs had increased cost for 0.15 parts once out of warranty – 0.10 low-voltage batteries as well 0.05 as advanced technology 0.00 FCEB CNG Diesel BEB components • Cumulative cost from in-service date Scheduled Unscheduled • Labor @ $50/h

NREL | 24