Hydrogen Vehicles

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Hydrogen Vehicles

Imagine the Big Island with hydrogen filling stations in every village and city all over the island! Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles can be used rather than using gasoline or diesel. Using hydrogen rather than gasoline or diesel in vehicles has been around for some time now and is the best possible solution to the way everyone is used to traveling. Fuel cell vehicles may also prove to be a viable option for Hawaii.

Wikipedia has an interesting article on hydrogen vehicles.

If the Big Island of Hawaii produced hydrogen fuel from renewable energy sources there are a number of vehicles that are already proven ready to use hydrogen fuel and it may be posssible to convert any vehicle over to hydrogen.

The list of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles is growing. The hydrogen fuel cell vehicle may prove to be the most popular. Most of these fuel cell vehicles are currently only available in demonstration models or in a lease construction in limited numbers and are not yet ready for general public use. The GM Sequel has a range of 300 miles! However, burning hydrogen for fuel in the engine just as we do gasoline or diesel is also another way to go. There is even a working toy model car that runs on solar power, using a reversible fuel cell to store energy in the form of hydrogen and oxygen gas. It can then convert the fuel back into water to release the solar energy.

For example, Wikipedia says, "Buses, trains, PHB bicycle, cargo bikes, golf carts, motorcycles, wheelchairs, ships, airplanes, submarines, high-speed cars, and rockets already can run on hydrogen, in various forms and sometimes at great expense. NASA uses hydrogen to launch Space Shuttles into space.

Price of Liquid Hydrogen

According to Yahoo Answers, Liquid hydrogen ranges in prices depending on how it is made, who makes it, and how much you buy. Typical present costs seem to be around $5.50 per kg. The density of LH is 0.07 kg/L, so this would be about $0.40 per litre, or about $1.50 per gallon. It really isn't all that hard to get LH, if you are willing to buy 200 L at a time.

However, if used as a fuel, that gallon of LH has one fourth the energy of a gallon of gasoline. The ultimate cost would then be $6.00 per gallon.

And some other points to consider. $5.50 per kg is the cost if hydrogen is made from natural gas. If made from electricity, it jumps to about $7.50 per kg. Almost no supplier makes hydrogen from electricity. The price of natural gas also goes up with the price of oil and gasoline. However, Gaseous Hydrogen is cheaper to produce and if windmills were used to make the electricity.

The current land speed record for a hydrogen powered vehicle is 333.38 km/h (207.2 mph) set by a prototype Ford Fusion Hydrogen 999 Fuel Cell Race Car at Bonneville Salt Flats in Wendover, Utah on August 2007." The car was designed and built by Ford engineers in collaboration with Ohio State University, Ballard Power Systems and Roush. According to Serous Wheels, "The Ford Fusion Hydrogen 999 is Ford’s latest environmental innovation, another step on the road toward commercially viable hydrogen fuel cell vehicles." According to Wired Magazine the Ford Fusion Hydrogen 999 joins the "The 10 Fastest Green Cars on the Planet."

So burning hydrogen in vehicles just like we use gasoline or diesel has proven it can be done. Wikipedia says, "The common internal combustion engine, usually fueled with gasoline (petrol) or diesel liquids, can be converted to run on gaseous hydrogen." In terms of their design, hydrogen combustion engines resemble conventional gasoline engines. The basis here, however, is the detonating gas reaction, where two parts of H2 react with one part of O2. As opposed to the hydrogen fuel cell, an ignition takes place in the combustion engine. The resulting combustion is then converted directly into kinetic energy. In hydrogen cars, H2 is stored in specially designed tanks, either as a compressed gas (CGH2) or as a cryogenic liquid at a temperature of -253°C (LH2).

Wikipedia further states, "Hydrogen internal combustion engine cars are different from hydrogen fuel cell cars. The hydrogen internal combustion car is a slightly modified version of the traditional gasoline internal combustion engine car. These hydrogen engines burn fuel in the same manner that gasoline engines do. Francois Isaac de Rivaz designed in 1807 the first internal combustion engine on hydrogen. Paul Dieges patented In 1970 a modification to internal combustion engines which allowed a gasoline powered engine to run on hydrogen US patent 3844262. Mazda has developed Wankel engines that burn hydrogen."

The Renesis, by Mazda, has also been adapted for a dual-fuel use, allowing it to run either on gasoline or hydrogen.

BMW has built the Hydrogen 7 which runs on hydrogen and says, "...the V-12 engine also runs on gasoline at the push of a button, though emissions will result. But all it takes is the power of the Hydrogen 7's 12-cylinder, 260 horsepower engine to prove the capability of our EfficientDynamics. The BMW Hydrogen 7 is not available for purchase at this time, but is considered to be a milestone in bringing forward hydrogen as the sustainable fuel for individual transportation...On a global level, hydrogen technology addresses the growing gaps in the supply of fossil fuels. More specifically, it is the only fuel that can allow for a reduction in the overall emission cycle, while meeting our energy needs in a sustainable way. Besides, not many fuels can be produced from renewable sources such as sun, wind, water and biomass." According to AutoBlogGreen Ford released pictures of the specially redesigned Ka that was used in the action flick Quantum of Solace and says the car in the movie would be powered by hydrogen.

Hydrogen Filling Stations in Germany

Today in Germany, there are at least five liquid hydrogen refueling stations - and soon there will be two in the US. Developed with Linde AG, they are virtually as easy to use as normal gasoline pumps. the Linde Hydrogen Center functions as a training facility for engineers and a testing facility for the latest hydrogen innovations. Linde says, "There are various ways of producing hydrogen. Currently, steam reforming of natural gas – as realised in The Linde Group’s industrial plants – is the standard hydrogen production method. Steam reforming can also be applied for hydrogen-rich biogas – an eco-friendly process that we are currently researching and advancing. Heavier hydrocarbons, such as coal or crude oil can be turned into hydrogen by partial oxidation, a variation of steam reforming with additional input of oxygen. Hydrogen can also be produced using other methods, most notably by electrolysis, i.e. by splitting water into its basic components O2 and H2 with the help of an electric current. When the electricity for this process originates from a renewable energy source, this hydrogen production method offers the possibility of a completely emission-free energy cycle." Linde states that "Hydrogen can be produced from virtually all energy sources. Its availability, therefore, is practically unlimited. Moreover, hydrogen is non-toxic, non-polluting, non-corrosive and not radioactive, and it does not create health risks, making it the most eco-friendly energy carrier in the world today. As it represents an efficient method of storing electricity, hydrogen will play a critical role in the future of our energy supply, providing power not only to vehicles, but also as a source of energy for private homes and within certain industries. Today, mankind is already consuming fossil fuels 100,000 times faster than it took geological processes to create them. This means that at some point in the future, our reserves of fossil fuels will be depleted. Hydrogen, on the other hand, can be produced from all primary energy sources, including renewable sources such as solar energy, wind power, water power, biomass or geothermal heat. As an energy carrier, hydrogen will therefore never run out."