Earlier this month Toyota exhibited carbon neutral technology at the Japan Mobility Show Bizweek 2024, including a portable hydrogen cartridge.
The car giant is working towards a carbon-neutral society based on a multi-pathway approach. It describes hydrogen as the ultimate clean energy, because it emits no CO2 during use, and CO2 emissions can also be minimised during the production process when renewable energy sources such as wind and solar are used.
The portable hydrogen cartridges, exhibited for the first time in Japan at the event, were created during the development of FCEVs (fuel cell EVs) to reduce the size and weight of hydrogen tanks, which are typically large and difficult to carry, to a size that can be carried by hand. Toyota says they are designed to make hydrogen a familiar and safe energy source that can be used in a variety of everyday situations.
At the Mobiity Show the cartridges were used to power a hydrogen cooker.
Also on show was Toyota’s liquid hydrogen-powered GR Corolla which began racing in 2021, running on gaseous hydrogen. Since 2023, it has been competing in endurance races in Japan and abroad using liquid hydrogen.
In addition, Toyota used the show to emphasise the circular economy in its car manufacturing including minimising ,recycling and reusing raw materials. Toyota is developing resource-efficient and long-life batteries for EVs as well as reusing used batteries recovered from end-of-life electrified vehicles.
Its sweep energy storage system utilises used batteries with different degrees of deterioration to maximise each battery’s remaining energy storage capacity. Toyota says this will contribute to a stable supply of electricity and the spread of renewable energy in combination with solar, wind and other renewable energy power generation systems.
