In a partnership of several auto manufacturers and hydrogen gas companies, liquid hydrogen refuelling stations are being built in Europe:
European car manufacturers BMW, Fiat and DaimlerChrysler have joined forces with petroleum giants BP, Agip and Linde to develop the roadside infrastructure needed for a future hydrogen economy. The Zero Emission Region, or Zero Regio, project involves the construction of hydrogen refuelling stations in Germany and Italy.
A big part of the project is developing a coupling that can transfer liquid hydrogen from pump to car:
The difficulties in dealing with liquid hydrogen arise from the fact that it must be kept at –253ºC so it does not evaporate. To do this, Linde developed a number of new insulating technologies, including a coupling that allows transfer of liquid hydrogen from a cryogenic pump to the tank of a hydrogen car. This coupling is being tested in collaboration with BMW.
