Albuquerque startup developing material for hydrogen cars

A New Mexico startup is betting on automakers to develop hydrogen cars and wants to provide material for them as nations and companies scramble to bring pollution-free vehicles to drivers.

The Albuquerque-based Pajarito Powder is developing material for hydrogen fuel cells that CEO Tom Stephenson hopes will one day aid those concept hydrogen-powered cars, KOB-TV in Albuquerque reported.

“Every fuel cell vehicle is going to need material like what we produce,” Stephenson said.

Fuel cell vehicles are zero-emission, running on power produced when hydrogen combines with oxygen in the air to create water.

Stephenson’s company of 17 employees is creating a thin film built directly into the hydrogen fuel cells. He dubbed the material Pajarito Powder, which is inspired by Pajarito Mesa — the site of Los Alamos National Laboratory.

Japan announced in May that it was backing a push for pollution-free vehicles that run on hydrogen. It is planning to build more hydrogen fueling stations so that fuel-cell vehicles on roads will grow to 40,000 by 2020.

Now, only a handful of such vehicles are on the roads, partly because of the scarcity of hydrogen stations.

Tokyo-based Honda, for instance has delivered only 245 of its latest Clarity fuel-cell vehicles in Japan, and the US Toyota has delivered about 3,000 of its Mirai fuel cell cars. (AP)