Hychain-Minitrans  [ Return towards  Partnerships  ]

This Project, which will take place over a 5-year timeframe, consists of two phases: 2006 to 2007 will be spent on manufacturing vehicles and developing infrastructure; and from 2008 to 2010, the vehicles will be tested in the four regions under actual conditions.

The initial priority will be fleets belonging to municipal departments in the partner cities (maintenance workers, gardeners, etc.) as well as wheelchairs in use in partnership with some hospitals in the Rhône-Alpes region of France (the greater urban community of Grenoble Alpes Métropole), Emilia Romagna in Italy (city of Modena), Castilla y León in Spain (cities of Soria and León) and Nordrhein Westfalen in Germany (the greater urban community of the Emscher Lippe region).

To fuel these vehicles with hydrogen simply and safely, the Hychain-Minitrans Project will also permit the development of innovative support services: for example, vending machines will make it possible to recharge the vehicle’s hydrogen fuel cell by replacing an empty cylinder of hydrogen with a full cylinder of hydrogen under very high pressure (up to 700 bar) in complete safety thanks to technologies developed and patented by Air Liquide. 

Air Liquide, general coordinator of the project, is involved in the design, the development and the homologation of the “energy cartridge" , the implementation of the hydrogen filling facilities and the cylinder distribution logistics in France.

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http://www.hychain.org