Fuel Cell Vehicle Range Calculator

That figure is hydrogen's lower heating value, the standard reference used across the hydrogen industry for how much usable energy a kilogram contains once water vapor formed during the reaction is not counted as recoverable heat, which matches how automotive fuel cells actually operate. It's a physical constant of hydrogen itself, not an assumption specific to any one vehicle or fuel cell design.

Only above roughly 80 km/h — below that speed, the model treats energy consumption as flat regardless of speed, similar to how real-world city and moderate-speed driving shows less dramatic efficiency swings than highway cruising. Once speed climbs past that point, aerodynamic drag increases sharply and consumption rises accordingly, which is why the range penalty for aggressive highway speeds is real and noticeable.

The calculator applies a 25% consumption increase for hilly terrain and a 55% increase for mountainous terrain relative to flat driving, reflecting the real extra energy needed to climb elevation that a flat route never requires. Since the fuel tank's total energy stays the same regardless of terrain, that consumption increase translates directly into a proportionally shorter range on the same tank.

No, it only compares the fuel cell vehicle's zero tailpipe emissions against a representative gasoline vehicle's emissions per kilometer driven, treating the hydrogen as a clean fuel at the point of use. If the hydrogen was produced from natural gas reforming rather than renewable-powered electrolysis, the true lifecycle emissions picture looks considerably different and would need a separate well-to-wheel analysis to capture accurately.