Skip to main content

Methanol range extender for fuel cell vehicle

The innovative QBeak electric car is to benefit from a sophisticated methanol fuel cell range extender that will give it a range of at least 800km. Development work is being carried out on the project by a consortium of Danish companies. The plan is to develop a novel, range-extended electric vehicle that uses biomethanol as a fuel source. TheModularEnergyCarrier concept (MECc) project has just been granted funding from the Danish government. The reworked electric car is expected to deliver high market pote
July 17, 2012 Read time: 2 mins
RSSThe innovative QBeak electric car is to benefit from a sophisticated methanol fuel cell range extender that will give it a range of at least 800km. Development work is being carried out on the project by a consortium of Danish companies. The plan is to develop a novel, range-extended electric vehicle that uses biomethanol as a fuel source. TheModularEnergyCarrier concept (MECc) project has just been granted funding from the Danish government. The reworked electric car is expected to deliver high market potential due to a competitive price and specifications that can be adapted to the user’s individual requirements. This versatility is delivered by the use of methanol-fuelled fuel cells for range extension.

The concept vehicle is based on the QBeak electric car, now in the final phase of development by ECOmove. The car essentially has six energy slots distributed through its structure that can each contain battery, fuel cell, or methanol tank. This allows the on-board energy storage to be adapted to different needs. The basic range-extended model will have a 2.5kW fuel cell and tank occupying two slots, but the modular design means that more fuel cell plus tank modules can be added if longer range is required by the customer. The project partners say that the car will have a range of at least 800km.

The QBeak is a plug-in type vehicle: the concept allows the customer the flexibility of recharging the batteries during off-peak periods when electricity costs are low, or filling up with methanol in a few minutes when that convenience is desired.

EV industry cluster Insero E-Mobility is managing the project, and it is being funded under the Energy Technology Development and Demonstration Program (EDDP), which supports the development of technologies to make Denmark independent of fossil fuels by 2050.

Related Content

  • February 4, 2013
    Technology overcomes EV range challenges
    According to new analysis from Frost and Sullivan, Strategic Analysis of Global Market for Range Extenders, major challenges currently faced by the electric vehicle (EV) revolve around the inability to provide long range in a single charge as well as the lengthy charging times that can vary from thirty minutes to ten hours. This has limited the number of adopters for EVs. Range extender technology overcomes these challenges, strategically positioned to make strong gains in the EV market. Currently, the mark
  • October 10, 2018
    Pivot Power: 'We need to rethink the EV customer experience'
    Electric vehicles will increasingly become a key part of the mobility mix but charging infrastructure is currently patchy. Adam Hill talks to Matt Allen of Pivot Power about disruption, horses, slot machines – and the importance of customer experience. Electric vehicles (EVs) – including buses, taxis and cars for individual and shared use – are already a common sight on our roads. They are not yet ubiquitous. But that will come. There will be around 30 million electric cars in the world by 2030 (as they
  • July 17, 2012
    Charging station infrastructure boost to electric vehicle use
    The first section of a planned network of stations for charging electric vehicles – the West Coast Electric Highway – opened in March, promising a welcome boost to the environment and economy of Oregon. Pete Goldin reports What should come first, the electric vehicle or the charging station? This dilemma has been hindering proliferation of ‘EVs’ in the US for years. Without a widespread and reliable infrastructure of charging stations, the American public is not likely to adopt EVs en masse. This may all b
  • December 12, 2014
    Infrastructure and the autonomous vehicle
    Harold Worrall ponders the effect of autonomous vehicles on transportation infrastructure. For the last century the transportation industry has been focused on the supply of infrastructure to support the ever growing fleet of vehicles and the greater number of miles covered by each vehicle. Our focus has been planning, funding, designing, building and maintaining roadways. Politicians, engineers, planners, financial managers … all of us have had this focus. We have experienced demand growth since the first