Wallingford hydrogen to power SanFran buses

A Wallingford green technology company will power new fuel cell buses in the San Francisco area.

Proton Energy Systems, a Wallingford firm specializing in hydrogen generation systems, will provide the electrolyzer to produce gaseous hydrogen for buses in the Alameda-Contra Costra Transit District.

The electrolyzer is the largest Proton Energy system has ever put in the field, and this one in California is the first to be introduced. The unit produces 65 kilograms of gaseous hydrogen per day, as opposed to smaller units that produce 12 kilograms per day.

"It is important because fueling stations are getting bigger, and we want this to be an example of what our technology can do both in the U.S. and across Europe," said Rob Friedland, president and CEO of Proton Energy Systems.

The 65-kilogram unit was developed, Friedland said, in partnership with Hamilton Sundstrand, located in Windsor Locks and is a company of  Hartford-based United Technologies.

The technology from Proton Energy Systems is part of a larger refueling station assembled by New Jersey-based Linde North America. The station will feature ionic compression technology, which can quickly fuel in the buses in 3-6 minutes.

The station will enable AC Transit to develop a larger commercial fleet of fuel cell buses, reducing the system's carbon dioxide emissions by more than 40 percent, said Jaimie Levin, director of AC Transit's alternative fuels policy. AC Transit serves 13 cities in the East Bay Area, including Oakland, Emeryville and Berkeley, as well as operating trans-bay service to San Francisco.

In addition to the AC Transit buses, this refueling station can power fuel cell cars produced by manufacturers GM, Toyota, Honda, Daimler and Hyundai.

Proton Energy Systems is developing its own string of hydrogen stations for fuel cell cars that will stretch from Maine to Miami. The first one in Wallingford will be complete in July, Friedland said.