Toyota hydrogen fuel tank can be used as battery

The transition to electric vehicles has been slower than many automakers expected, and consumers seem to have forgotten about the fuel cell vehicle category. However, Toyota is not about to give up, so it will introduce a number of related products at the Bizweek Japan 2024 Mobility Expo.

Notably, Toyota will introduce portable hydrogen tanks for the first time in Japan. As the name suggests, the company has reduced the size and weight of the hydrogen tanks to make them easier to carry around. The goal is to make hydrogen a familiar and safe energy source that can be used in a variety of everyday situations.

Hydrogen tanks can be used to power fuel cells, or to cook by burning hydrogen gas. For the latter use, Toyota has partnered with Rinnai to develop a hydrogen-powered stove.

More interestingly, Toyota thinks the hydrogen tanks could be used like giant AA batteries. Fuel cell vehicle (FCEV) owners could swap out the tanks to refill them. It seems the company also sees portable hydrogen tanks as a way to power remote buildings and outposts.

In addition to the hydrogen tank, Toyota will show off a hydrogen-powered GR Corolla race car. It will also show off a “scavenging energy storage system” that uses batteries recovered from end-of-life electric vehicles (both pure electric and hybrid).

Toyota says it can reuse a variety of used batteries with varying degrees of damage to maximize the remaining energy storage capacity of each battery, and they will contribute to creating a stable power supply and popularizing renewable energy combined with solar, wind and other renewable energy generation systems.