Page - 59 - in Emerging Technologies for Electric and Hybrid Vehicles

Energies 2017,10, 1217 9.1.3. SafetyConcerns Theconcernsaboutsafetyarerisingmainlyabout theFCVsnowadays. Therearespeculations that, ifhydrogenescapes the tanks it iskept into, cancauseseriousharm,as it ishighlyflammable. Ithasnocoloreither,makinga leakhardtonotice. There isalso thechanceof the tanks toexplode incaseofacollision. Tocounter theseproblems, theautomakershavetakenmeasures toensure the integrityof the tanks; theyarewrappedwithcarbonfibers incaseof theToyotaMirai. In thiscar, the hydrogenhandlingpartsareplacedoutside thecabin,allowingthegas todisperseeasily incaseof any leak, therearealsoarrangements toseal the tankoutlet incaseofhigh-speedcollision[166]. 9.2. SocialProblems 9.2.1. SocialAcceptance Theacceptanceofanewandimmature technology,alongwith its consequences, takessometime in thesocietyas itmeanschangeofcertainhabits [167].UsinganEVinsteadofaconventionalvehicle meanschangeofdrivingpatters, refuelinghabits,preparedness touseanalternative transport incase of lowbattery,andthesearenoteasy toadopt. 9.2.2. InsufficientChargingStations Thoughpublicchargingstationshaveincreasedalotinnumber,still theyarenotenough.Coupled withthe lengthychargingtime, thisactsasamajordeterrentagainstEVpenetration.Notall thepublic chargingstationsarecompatiblewitheverycaraswell; therefore italsobecomesachallenge tofinda properchargingpointwhenit is requiredtoreplete thebattery. There isalso theriskofgettinga fully occupiedchargingstationwithnoroomforanother car. But, themanufacturersareworkingon to mitigate thisproblem.TeslaandNissanhavebeenexpandingtheirownchargingnetworks,as it, in turnmeans theycansellmoreof theirEVs.Hydrogenrefuelingstationsarenotabundantyetaswell. It isnecessaryaswell to increase theadoptionofFCVs. In [168],aplacementstrategyforhydrogen refuelingstations inCalifornia isdiscussed. It stated thata totalof sixty-eight suchstationswillbe sufficient toprovideservice toFCVsin thearea. Toget thebetteroutof theremainingstations, there aredifferent tripplanningapplications,bothwebbasedandmanufacturerprovided,whichhelps to obtainarouteso that thereareenoughchargingfacilities toreachthedestination. 9.3. EconomicProblems HighPrice Thepriceof theEVs isquitehighcomparedto their ICEcounterparts. This isbecauseof thehigh cost of batteries [81] and fuel cells. Tomakepeopleoverlook this factor, governments indifferent countries includingtheUKandGermany,haveprovided incentivesandtaxbreakswhichprovide the buyersofEVswithsubsidies.Massproductionandtechnologicaladvancementswill leadtoadecrease in thepricesof batteries aswell as fuel cells. AffordableEVswitha long range like theChevrolet Bolt has alreadyappeared in themarket,while anothervehiclewith the samepromises (theTesla Model 3) is anticipated to arrive soon. Figure 64 shows the limitationsofEVs in the three sectors. Table29demonstrates thedrawbacks inkeyfactors,whileTable28suggestssomesolutions for the existing limitations. 59