Now operational at Honda’s California research and development facility, the next-generation solar hydrogen refueling station promises to fill up your vehicle for about 30 miles’ worth of driving.
The station’s thin-film panels pull solar energy from the sun and water from the ground into an electrolysis machine that makes hydrogen fuel. Because Honda’s station doesn’t use a compressor, it’s small enough to be used at a home.
The idea is that people will refill their vehicles at night (the solar panels pull sun during the day, feed it to the grid, and then the car retrieves power during off-peak hours) and use big public stations for any fill-up during the day.