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Government of Canada, University of Victoria and University of Toronto
2004/18
April 28, 2004
CANADIAN STUDENTS EXCEL IN HYDROGEN FUELLING DESIGN
OTTAWA — The future of green transportation
in Canada looks very promising, as students from two Canadian universities
took top prizes in an international hydrogen competition. A team from
the University of Victoria was awarded first prize and a University of
Toronto team placed third in the National Hydrogen Association’s
first annual University Student Design Contest for hydrogen fuelling
stations, which was co-sponsored by Natural Resources Canada (NRCan).
More than 100 educators and students from more than 40 universities
and colleges across Canada and the United States participated in the
competition to design the next generation of hydrogen fuelling stations.
The winners were announced today at the association’s annual conference
in Los Angeles, California.
“I congratulate the winners of this competition. They are demonstrating
the ingenuity and innovation Canada needs to make hydrogen an energy
choice for the future,” said the Honourable R. John Efford, Minister
of Natural Resources Canada, whose department held a seat on the competition’s
judging panel. “The Government of Canada is committed to supporting
cleaner energy technology that will help Canada address climate change
and build an efficient, sustainable economy.”
“Our design proposal combines practical engineering with creative
solutions, while handling the challenges associated with fuelling a vehicle
using compressed hydrogen in a safe, timely and cost-effective manner,” said
Andrew Rowe, Team Leader for the University of Victoria. “The students
made use of some novel characteristics of the Vancouver location — namely,
what the environmental and cost benefits could be if a local source of
hydrogen were used.”
“This competition provided a great opportunity to intensely explore
one small piece of what it is going to take to transition into a hydrogen
economy,” said Monica Samec, Team Leader for the University of
Toronto. “None of the students had experience in this area, but
we learned quickly, put in a lot of effort and are pretty proud of the
final result.”
For the competition, the 17 participating teams submitted design proposals,
including drawings of their proposed hydrogen fuelling station. They
were also required to investigate the technical attributes, safety features
and capabilities, economics and environmental impacts of hydrogen, and
develop a marketing plan to increase public awareness of the hydrogen
industry.
Storage and delivery of hydrogen is seen as a key area in developing
the hydrogen economy. The fuelling stations designed by the teams are
a look ahead at what is needed to service the realistic needs of hydrogen
vehicles. Canadian Transportation Fuel Cell Alliance, managed by NRCan,
supported this project.
The Government of Canada’s approach to climate change is focused
on making the right choices for Canada. This will ensure that the actions
taken contribute to the long-term goals of building a sustainable economy
for the 21st century, a healthier environment and strong communities,
while affirming Canada’s place in the world.
For more information, media may contact:
Alexandra Muir
Director of
Communications
Office of the Minister,
Natural Resources Canada
(613)
947-8246 |
Ghyslain Charron
Media Relations
Natural
Resources Canada
(613) 992-4447 |
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