Multi-period planning of hydrogen refuelling stations using flow data: A case study for Istanbul

Decreasing energy resources is among the future concerns of almost all sectors, including transportation. Hydrogen is one of the major alternatives. Although the promotion of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles (HFCVs) is supported by the governments and automobile companies, hydrogen refuelling stations (HRSs) should be accessible in order for HFCV to become widespread. Therefore the location and the number of HRS play an essential role for the spread of the HFCVs. In this study, we aim to find the number and the location of HRSs to be operated in Istanbul by using a multi-period p-median model. The adaptation to hydrogen technology for each district of the city is modelled using human development index, a measure for life quality which is then used to determine the HFCVs’ demand based on traffic flow data. It turns out that ignoring the transition of adopting hydrogen technology may result in a significant loss. HRSs have a cluster-like structure which is due to the demographic structure of the city. One cluster of stations serves to the underpopulated region (at the peripherals) and the other cluster is located at the densely populated districts (the middle regions of the city). It turns out that instead of spreading from the center to the city boundary, the stations appear at both clusters from early periods of the 30 years planning horizon.