H2RESCUE MISSION


Transportation methods such as vehicles, ships and aircraft rank as some of the top leading sources of greenhouse gas emis- sions. Passenger vehicles, including cars and trucks, make up 41% of carbon diox- ide emissions by burning petroleum-based fuel. Despite comprising only 4% of the U.S. passenger vehicles, trucks contribute to 23% of the greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere—and the U.S. Army is not exempt from contributing to these numbers.


Te U.S. Army owns and operates a large fleet of various types of vehicles, including tanks, armored trucks and heavy equip- ment movers. According to a July 2021 Government Accountability Office report, the Army currently has over 242,000 vehi- cles in its fleet. As part of its 2022 Climate Strategy, the Army is aiming to reach net- zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. One of the strategies to reach this goal is by fielding all-electric vehicles—begin- ning with fielding hybrid tactical vehicles by 2035 and fully electric tactical vehi- cles by 2050.


AN ECO-FRIENDLY RESCUE The consequences of climate change include extreme weather patterns and catastrophic storms, such as hurricanes, wildfires and dangerous flooding. Te U.S. Army Corps of Engineers acts in response to these occurrences to deliver disaster relief.


Nicholas Josefik is an industrial engineer with ERDC-CERL and has been the tech- nical lead on the H2Rescue project since October 2020. “We saw a need with all the natural disasters and emergency events happening and we wanted to improve the capabilities of some emergency resources,” said Josefik. In 2019, what began as a brainstorming session on how to improve emergency response capabilities, ERDC- CERL, DEVCOM GVSC and DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renew- able Energy came up with the concept of H2Rescue. “When we came up with the idea, there [were] the California wild- fires going out west, there were a couple of hurricanes in the southeast and we knew that big swaths of the U.S. were having these natural disasters [and] that custom- ers didn’t have power, water and were just devastated,” Josefik said.


H2Rescue has the capability to travel approximately 1,500 miles on a single fuel- up when the hydrogen is used solely for driving, or it can travel a shorter distance


and utilize some of the hydrogen to export power to a disaster-stricken location. For instance, when the H2Rescue covers a 180-mile round trip, the vehicle also has enough hydrogen fuel to provide 25 kilo- watts of power for up to 72 hours. Once onsite, the vehicle can provide power, heat and water. Te vehicle boasts a climate- controlled box bed that can serve as a mobile command center or a warm- ing and cooling center. Additionally, the vehicle’s fuel cell can produce water that, once treated, can be used in an emergency. When describing a recent field demon- stration of the vehicle, Josefik said, “It drove 180 miles and then we parked it. We started exporting power and exported at 25 kilowatts for 72 hours. Tat’s about enough to power 15 homes for three days straight.”


THE HYDROGEN HUB As a nonpolluting alternative to methane, hydrogen is the most abundant element on Earth and is estimated to make up 75% of the universe’s mass. As vehicles powered


GETTING OUT OF A JAM


Carbon dioxide and methane are the primary greenhouse gases responsible for climate change. Passenger vehicles, including cars and trucks, make up 41% of carbon dioxide emissions. (Photo by Luigi Alvarez, Pexels)


34


Army AL&T Magazine


Spring 2024


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