EHA Newsletter December 2010

The project is focused on the development of educational programmes and training initiatives for technical professionals to secure the required mid- and long-term availability of human resources capable to properly operate the technologies safely.
This will be done for various educational levels, including several countries with different experiences on the matter.

Cooperation with other educational programs like Leonardo will be sought to launch new initiatives and projects which allow getting enough well-trained work force related to hydrogen technologies in a near future.

The EHA in collaboration with the Italian Federation of Scientific and Technical Associations, FAST, is supporting the dissemination of this project.

To provide a forum for debate and creative thinking regarding the opportunities of educational and training activities related to hydrogen technologies, improve public acceptance and perceptions of the hydrogen technologies and fuel cells, create a point to exchange knowledge, experiences and educational materials with stakeholders, building visibility.

The Trans-European Transport Network, TEN-T, programme consists of hundreds of projects – defined as studies or works – whose ultimate purpose is to ensure the cohesion, interconnection and interoperability of the trans-European transport network, as well as access to it. The TEN-T Executive Agency will organise its third annual Project Management Workshop on 15 and 16 February 2011 at the Charlemagne building in Brussels, Belgium. The event aims to gather its beneficiaries together to discuss key topics relevant for successsul cooperation and provide more information on: mid-term review of the Multi-Annual Programme 2011 Calls for Proposals Intelligent Transport Systems financial and project management practices You will also have the opportunity on 16 February to organise one-on-one meetings with Agency staff to discuss general topics and/or individual issues. These meetings will take place at the Agency’s new premises. The EHA is exploring potential projects related to hydrogen for the next TEN T Call 2011. For more information please click visit the TEN T website.

The European Commission has launched an easy-to-use website to help public authorities and anyone who cares about the environment choose the cleanest and most energy-efficient vehicles available. The Clean Vehicle Portal – available on http://www.cleanvehicle.eu – will be of great help as a new directive on the promotion of clean and energy efficient vehicles requires that from this month all purchases of vehicles for public transport services take into account energy consumption, CO2 emissions and pollutant emissions. It provides information on legislation for clean and energy-efficient vehicles on EU level and in all Member States; it provides access to technical data in the largest vehicle database in Europe; and it facilitates joint procurement. Vice-President Siim Kallas, responsible for transport, said: “This directive and this website will give a boost to clean and energy-efficient technologies by showing the real cost of using vehicles. Not only should the initial purchase cost be considered, but also the vehicle’s lifetime energy consumption and pollutant emissions. In line with our policy to price in all costs, it makes sense to go for the greener option. This website will be a great aid in identifying these greener and more efficient vehicles.” The directive requires the public [...]

The International Short Course and Advanced Research Workshop is ideally suited to those who wish to meet the growing demand for specialists in Hydrogen Safety Engineering i.e. industries and services such as aerospace, process industry, energy industry, civil works, transport and distribution, fire and rescue services, regulatory authorities, teaching and research institutes, various industrialist co operations, consultancies etc. The course will be focused on Hydrogen Regulation, Codes and Standard and is aimed at researchers, professionals, industrialists and those who have an interest in working with hydrogen in this new and rapid advancing field. During round table sessions, presentions will be given on best practices and developments in hydrogen research,  refuelling,   storage and safety. For more information see: University of Ulster

The international conference is aimed at (i) presenting scientific and technical results on fuel cell materials, fuel cell stacks and systems and their applications, and (ii) initiating international scientific exchanges between laboratories, fuel cells suppliers, component manufacturers and industrial end-users.

On 1 December, Coventry University unveiled its award-winning Series 100 hydrogen fuelling station from leading provider Air Products. The station will be used predominantly to fuel a fleet of hydrogen-powered vehicles which are built in Coventry by the University’s own spin-off company, Microcab. As part of a wider government funded piece of research, local people will be able to apply to trial the vehicles on the UK’s roads. The government’s Technology Strategy Board and Advantage West Midlands funded CABLED project – Coventry and Birmingham Low Emission Vehicle Demonstrators – will see 110 low carbon vehicles operating between locations. The opening of the station completes the next stage in the creation of a Hydrogen Ring of fuelling facilities in the Midlands that form the heart of planned UK hydrogen fuelling infrastructure. Ian Williamson, European Hydrogen and Bio Energy Director at Air Products and President of the European Hydrogen Association explains: “The new facility at Coventry University strategically links three cities in the Midlands with hydrogen fuelling stations and will prove to be a vital step towards the creation of a low carbon hydrogen transport infrastructure for the UK. “For members of the public to be able to trial hydrogen cars for [...]

Air Products is providing the hydrogen and fueling infrastructure for The Boeing Company’s Phantom Eye, a newly unveiled hydrogen-powered and unmanned airborne system demonstrator that is able to stay aloft at 65,000 feet for up to four days. Phantom Eye will soon begin a series of ground and taxi tests at NASA’s Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. The aircraft is in preparation for its first flight in 2011, a debut flight expected to last between four and eight hours. “Working with Boeing on this effort has been a privilege. It is always exciting and interesting to be associated with a cutting edge project, and the Phantom Eye certainly fits that category,” said Bob Kelly, business development manager–Hydrogen Energy Systems at Air Products. “Our approach to working on this project was to focus on our core competencies and values of safety first, and being mindful of the specific customer needs. Our engineering and design reviews were always very much aligned with that focus.” Air Products and Boeing engineers worked closely to provide a cost effective and innovative fueling system capable of delivering liquid hydrogen to the vehicle. The hydrogen propulsion system has been described by Boeing [...]