Extreme H has launched its ‘purpose-built’ hydrogen racecar, the Pioneer 25, ahead of the FIA-sanctioned championship’s first season next year.
The Pioneer 25 has been designed and built by Spark Racing Technology, the French company that also manufactures cars for the FIA Formula E World Championship.
Extreme H will replace the all-electric Extreme E series in 2025. The championship and Spark took the opportunity of that transition develop a new car based around a hydrogen fuel cell stack from Symbio that will generate electric power to propel the vehicle over rough terrain.
The 75kWM hydrogen fuel cell stack is the primary energy source. A typical hydrogen stack consists of several cells, each of which has an anode on one side and a cathode on the other. These are separated by an electrolyte membrane in the middle. Hydrogen molecules are injected from storage tanks (Pioneer 25 holds 2kg worth) into the anode, but only the protons are allowed to pass through the membrane to the cathode side; the electrons are redirected outside the cell through an electrical circuit. This circuit route is where the electrical power is generated and transferred to the car’s battery and motor. Once the electrons return to the cathode, they marry up with the protons and oxygen (which flows into the cathode only). The reaction of those three components generates water vapour and heat which are emitted from the car as waste products, rather than carbon dioxide as in a ty...