News

UTC Power Fuel Cell Used in A330 Hybrid Fuel Cell Bus

October 12, 2005 by Jeff Shepard

UTC Power, a division of United Technologies Corp. (South Windsor, CT), reported that its zero-emission fuel cell technology is powering the A330 transit bus from Van Hool (Lier, Belgium), a manufacturer of urban transport buses, luxury over-the-road coaches, and heavy-duty truck trailers. The A330 is a unique combination fuel cell and hybrid-electric bus. UTC Power's PureMotion™120 and ISE Corp.'s hybrid-electric drive system enable the bus to perform at twice the efficiency of a conventional diesel-powered bus. Four fuel-cell-powered A330s will be in service in the North American market within a year.

A notable advantage of PureMotion technology is its ability to combine pure hydrogen stored aboard the bus with oxygen drawn from the air at near-ambient pressure to produce zero-emission, highly efficient power. "Because our fuel cell operates at near-ambient pressure, we do not need a compressor. This, combined with the hybrid-drive system, greatly increases the fuel efficiency and the reliability of the system," said UTC Power President Jan van Dokkum. "This design also results in an unbelievably quiet bus."