Grid to wheel energy efficiency analysis of battery- and fuel cell-powered vehicles

Sustainable energy consumption is an important part of the renewable energy economy as renewable energy generation and storage. Almost one-third of the global energy consumption can be credited to the transportation of goods and people around the globe. To move towards a renewable energy-based economy, we must adopt to a more sustainable energy consumption pattern worldwide especially in the transportation sector. In this article, a comparison is being made between the energy efficiency of a fuel cell vehicle and a battery electric vehicle. A very simple yet logical approach has been followed to determine the overall energy required by each vehicle. Other factors that hinder the progress of fuel cell vehicle in market are also discussed. Additionally, the prospects of a hydrogen economy are also discussed in detail. The arguments raised in this article are based on physics, economic analyses, and laws of thermodynamics. It clearly shows that an electric economy makes far greater sense than a hydrogen economy. The main objective of this analysis is to determine the energy efficacy of battery-powered vehicles as compared to fuel cell-powered vehicles.