hydro power??

[KeGrO]

i just read about the switch over from gas to hydrogen. it claims a 50% increase in power, and is a whole lot easier on fuel money and the environment. does anyone have one yet. or had their car modified to use hydrogen? i heard about it being used a little in cali, but since i don't live there i don't have any info? does anyone?

[rsxer45]

Originally posted by KeGrO
i just read about the switch over from gas to hydrogen. it claims a 50% increase in power, and is a whole lot easier on fuel money and the environment. does anyone have one yet. or had their car modified to use hydrogen? i heard about it being used a little in cali, but since i don't live there i don't have any info? does anyone?

I don't think these type of cars a ready for mass production yet (I could be wrong). There are probably a few prototypes given to celebs or something to drive around, but I heard that these type of cars are way too expensive for mass production as of now. But, the benefits of hydrogen are amazing. Ideally, hydrogen actually produces about 2.5 times as much energy as the same quantity of gas. Plus, the only waste product is water vapor. Im really, looking foward to these cars in the future. The only question I have is what are they going to do with the excess waste water. In cold climates, if the waste was eliminated into the air, it would come back down as ice or snow and make driving conditions hell. Maybe they just store it in the car?

[454Casull]

250% more by volume or by mass?

BTW, 50% increase in power over what?

[rsxer45]

Originally posted by 454Casull
250% more by volume or by mass?

BTW, 50% increase in power over what?

sorry, by mass.

[454Casull]

Originally posted by rsxer45


sorry, by mass.

Yup. Hydrogen has a greater energy content than any other chemical fuel by mass, but by volume it isn't. And volume is more important to storage than mass.

[Route666]

Originally posted by rsxer45


The only question I have is what are they going to do with the excess waste water. In cold climates, if the waste was eliminated into the air, it would come back down as ice or snow and make driving conditions hell. Maybe they just store it in the car?

Build in drink dispensers into the cars problem solved hehe

[ivymike1031]

Originally posted by rsxer45


I don't think these type of cars a ready for mass production yet (I could be wrong). There are probably a few prototypes given to celebs or something to drive around, but I heard that these type of cars are way too expensive for mass production as of now. But, the benefits of hydrogen are amazing. Ideally, hydrogen actually produces about 2.5 times as much energy as the same quantity of gas. Plus, the only waste product is water vapor. Im really, looking foward to these cars in the future. The only question I have is what are they going to do with the excess waste water. In cold climates, if the waste was eliminated into the air, it would come back down as ice or snow and make driving conditions hell. Maybe they just store it in the car?

you know that a large amount of water vapor is created by your current engine, right?

[911GT2]

There's one thing alot of people don't realize about hydrogen fueled cars. They can't just drill for the stuff and it's not cheap to make.

It DOES have a 50% increase in efficiency (at least) but whgen you factor in the extra costs of refinement in comparison to gas, the advantage falls to 10% at best. Not worth building a multi-billion dollar infrastructure until we can find a cheaper way to make the stuff.

[ivymike1031]

a 50% increase in efficiency? comparing what to what?

[Polygon]

Originally posted by ivymike1031
a 50% increase in efficiency? comparing what to what?

Petrol.

BMW has some prototypes running around in Europe, three I believe. It is the future IMO. I think we will go from fission reactors to fusion reactors. Use the most abundant resource in the universe and where the only waste is water. Screw electric, and the hybrids. Give me hydrogen. We can retain out cars the way they are and still be good to the environment, which is what I like the most. With Bush putting billions into this I would say this could be a reality in 15 - 25 years.

AS for now, you can’t change you car over. You would have nowhere to fuel, and it would be VERY expensive.

[Moppie]

Originally posted by Polygon
I think we will go from fission reactors to fusion reactors.

You want to drive a car with a Fusion reactor in it?


Size and safety problems aside they actualy have to create a long lasting and stable fusion reaction before you can even consider useing it as a power source.

[ivymike1031]

Efficient compared to what?

Originally posted by Polygon

Petrol.

Really? I haven't yet seen a working system where that's the case. Please elaborate.

[Polygon]

Originally posted by Moppie





You want to drive a car with a Fusion reactor in it?

ROTFLMO!!!!!

No, I don't want to drive around a hydrogen bomb. Imagine the rear enders with that! I was saying that I think our current nuclear fission reactors will be replaced with nuclear fusion reactors.

As for the petrol comment, that was a guess. I don't know what he is say it is more efficient than.

Originally posted by Moppie
Size and safety problems aside they actualy have to create a long lasting and stable fusion reaction before you can even consider useing it as a power source.

Yeah, it may be over 40 to 50 years before we get to that point. It is just WAY too unstable right now. It will be great when they do get it perfected.

[aznpeter]

yes hydrogen powered cars will be environmentally friendly and higher energy/mass compared to petro but
- takes way too much space to go the same distance a small tank of gasoline would, unless u use liquid hydrogen then u better have some damn good containers to hold them---too expensive
- the energy needed to extract pure hydrogen evens out the gains-- also expensive
- very explosive

hydrogen powered cars r just not practically in this age..maybe 50 years in the future..but that requires some heck load of work..good thing that ppl r workin on it

hybrids r much more practical and realistic for now...even solar cars

[ivymike1031]

Originally posted by aznpeter
yes hydrogen powered cars will be environmentally friendly

That's really only true if you assume that an "environmentally friendly" source of H2 is found. Currently the best place to get the H2 is by hacking it off of hydrocarbons (ie methane), and by the time you're done with it, you've used considerably more methane than you would have used if you'd just burned it in the engine. Since cleaner sources of hydrogen are currently either sci-fi (fusion reactors that produce energy instead of consuming it), just too expensive (solar), or not widely available (ocean turbines, etc), I don't see any benefit of using H2 in vehicles for quite some time. Current "expert estimates" of when H2-powered vehicles will be more environmentally friendly than diesels, diesel-electric, or gasoline-electric hybrids, put the date somewhere beyond 2020.