Future Fuels - Market Report


towards zero emission equipment for the construction, film & tv and events sectors.


Andrew Barker, Managing Director of TCP Group, said: “As a business we made the decision back in 2015 that we would back hydrogen as an energy vector. Our focus was, and remains, full consideration and optimisation of energy load requirements. We use hydrogen where there is a requirement for up to one kilowatt as a continuous load and for low kilowatt load- based duty cycles.


“It is talked about being a future fuel but for those smaller wattage applications, hydrogen can be used today. Every day of the week we are out there with many hundreds of lighting towers working in the field. We are keen to engage with any parties who want to start on that journey or partner on looking at power applications where hydrogen could do the job.”


TCP Group has also developed a DC generator in partnership with Intelligent Energy. The Eco- GH2 uses the IE 801 fuel cell module to produce DC energy to a maximum output of 1000W. It is designed for DC load applications and for pairing with TCP’s LGP Inverter AC Power units for hand tools, accessories and welfare units.


and further normalise the use of hydrogen.”


TCP delivers each lighting tower to site with four hydrogen gas cylinders from BOC. “We supply hydrogen lighting towers to our rental partners as well as directly to some contractors,” she added. “Any customer can also take on our managed gas service package where we remotely monitor the gas usage, contact the customer when the cylinders need replacing, go to site and exchange them. A much- appreciated service delivered by TCP.”


More to come


While hydrogen is making progress, there is also more to come from battery technologies. Rod Dayrit is an expert on batteries who formerly worked for Samsung and is now director of business development for Delta-Q Technologies, which manufactures industrial battery chargers used in lifting equipment.


“Hydrogen has its place because it enables high energy density,” said Dayrit. “The problem is infrastructure. Even inside a facility they have to create the infrastructure to be able to support the charging of a hydrogen fuel cell. That has been the Achilles heel for automotive and if they can’t implement it on a mass scale, then nobody else will be able to do it.


Andrew Barker, Managing Director of TCP Group.


Nadine Daines, head of marketing and communications at TCP Group, explains the strategy: “As a nation we are having to look at homegrown energy for our energy security. Slowly and surely the benefits and favourability of hydrogen are becoming more well-known and understood. TCP Group is expanding the range of equipment to meet demand, working with supply partner BOC. The large, planned infrastructure projects such as Thames Gateway and Lower Thames Crossing will, undoubtedly embrace


“The value of a battery per se, lithium or lead, is that it uses electricity that is already present. You might have to modify your infrastructure a little to support the higher currents you need, but it fundamentally already exists. There is a place for hydrogen, but it is not going to be a replacement for batteries.”


The reason that experts like Dayrit are so confident in the future for batteries is that a new technology is just around the corner: solid state.


“Graphene and solid-state batteries will enable you to charge faster and increase energy capacity,” he said. “The ability to charge these batteries faster is a big factor. In current lithium batteries, the electrolyte is


Solid state batteries will be mainstream by 2025.


liquid which is what creates the volatility. If you transfer to a solid-state similar to transistors, that is your most optimal solution and will allow even faster charging.


“Solid-state will be mainstream by 2025. They have been working on it for decades,


Rod Dayrit of Delta-Q.


and it has progressed throughout the years. There have been solutions that can perform for some time now, but the key is producing at a mass scale. The capital investment to solve this is massive right now, and that is being driven by the automotive sector. That will be its first new mainstream application because of the size and scale of automotive. Companies are throwing billions of dollars into this. By 2025 electric vehicles will be picking up a lot more momentum so they are going to need a solution outside of what we currently have, which is just an interim solution for automotive.


“Eventually rental equipment will transition to solid-state as well, but it is all about scale. Automotive is really the trailblazer leading the market, and everyone else is leveraging what they are doing. It is all about scale and commercialisation. When solid-state comes around that will be a game changer.” n


June 2022 - Executive Hire News 21


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