Battery EVs may take us down the wrong road – the fuel of the future could be hydrogen

Peter Dobson’s career has covered disciplines from physics and chemistry to materials science and engineering. He was strategic advisor on nanotechnology to the Research Councils in the UK from 2009 to 2013 and sits on several Engineering and Physical Science Research Council panels and committees. He is a visiting professor at King’s College London and UCL, and retains a fellowship at The Queen’s College, Oxford.

It is now becoming apparent that there are serious limitations to the adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) if they are powered with rechargeable lithium-ion batteries. The range is limited in most cases to around 150 miles and the charging times are long, measured in hours, if the battery longevity is to be maintained. Furthermore, charging points and the considerable associated infrastructure needs to be developed and installed at large future costs. If we are to exploit the clean advantages of...

+92% more