Toyota and its subsidiary, Woven Planet have developed a working prototype of its portable H2 cartridge. This cartridge design will facilitate the everyday transport and supply of H2 energy to power a broad range of daily life applications in and outside of the home. Toyota and Woven Planet will conduct proof of concept trials in various places, including Woven City, a human-centered smart city of the future currently being constructed in Susono City, Shizuoka Prefecture.
Toyota and Woven Planet are studying several viable pathways to carbon neutrality and consider H2 to be a promising solution. H2 has significant advantages. Zero CO2 is emitted when H2 is used. Furthermore, when H2 is produced using renewable energy sources such as wind, solar, geothermal, and biomass, CO2 emissions are minimized during the production process as well. H2 can be used to generate electricity in fuel cell systems and can also be used as a combustion fuel.
Together with ENEOS Corporation, Toyota and Woven Planet are working to build a comprehensive H2-based supply chain aimed at expediting and simplifying production, transport, and daily usage. These trials will focus on meeting the energy needs of Woven City residents and those living in its surrounding communities.
Benefits of using H2 cartridges
Next steps for the H2 cartridge
Today most H2 is generated from fossil fuels and used for industrial purposes such as fertilizer production and petroleum refining. To use H2 as an energy source in our homes and daily life, the technology must meet different safety standards and be adjusted to new environments. In the future, we expect H2 will be generated with very low carbon emissions and used in a wider variety of applications. The Japanese government is working on a range of studies to promote the safe early adoption of H2, and Toyota and its business partners are excited to offer cooperation and support.
Our goal is to help H2 become commonplace by making this clean form of energy safe, convenient, and affordable. By establishing the underlying supply chain, we hope to facilitate the flow of a larger volume of H2 and fuel more applications. Woven City will explore and test an array of energy applications using H2 cartridges including mobility, household applications, and many future possibilities we have yet to imagine. Together with inventors and those living within and around Woven City, we will continue to advance mobility over time by constantly developing more practical applications for H2 cartridges. In future Woven City demonstrations, we will continue to improve the H2 cartridge itself, making it increasingly easy to use and improving the energy density.
