|
Hydrogen-Based
(Fuel Cell) Cars
BMW
Pioneering the Hydrogen Car of the Future - BMW has been trialling cars powered by liquid
hydrogen for the past few years. According to BMW's
Director for Environmental Protection, Manfred Heller, the test vehicles are
comparable in driving performance to other models of the popular 7 Series.
Water Your Garden with Your Car! - Instead of
producing harmful carbon dioxide like petrol based cars, water is emitted.
According to Mr. Heller, one of the key objectives of BMW's research and
development is "to preserve fossil fuels and reduce carbon dioxide emissions
(which) can be
achieved with clean energy if the hydrogen fuel is produced by means of
renewable resources."
Hydrogen fuel can be produced through electrolysis. In electrolysis, water
comes into contact with energy and the water is split into its component
parts, hydrogen and oxygen. The hydrogen created is stored, forming a source
of pure hydrogen.
Fuel Remains Expensive - The main draw back for
Hydrogen powered cars at the moment is the expensive and energy intensive
process involved in creating the liquid Hydrogen. In addition, existing gas
stations will need to be fitted with liquid Hydrogen pumps & storage
vessels costing millions of dollars.
Solar Powered Hydrogen Cars? BMW's hydrogen powered sedans toured the globe last year as part of the
company's Clean Energy World Tour 2001. The electrolysis process requires a
power source and BMW is hoping for a renewable source. One possible solution
is above our heads. The sun sends
as much energy to the earth in an hour as mankind uses in a year. The sun's
energy could be harnessed in solar power plants, for example, to produce
liquid hydrogen for the BMW 750hL.
10 Years Before Commercial Production? BMW engineer Albrecht Jungk warned it was
unlikely that hydrogen enabled cars would be on the road any earlier than a
decade from now: "Ten years is the earliest estimation but because there is still a
long way to go with discussions between other parties like Shell and BP,"
Jungk said. "It shouldn't be anytime soon."
4 Times more Expensive Than Petrol - Jungk added that since hydrogen was so expensive, it was making people opt
between clean or cheap. "At the moment hydrogen is about four times more expensive than
petrol," Jungk noted. "We cannot estimate whether the price will
decrease in time since no one can predict the price of fuel."
|
Fuel
Cell Engines - How Do They Work?
 Fuel cell electrics are vehicles that
use an electric motor like a battery
electric, but instead of batteries, power is provided by a fuel
cell.
A fuel cell is an electro-chemical
device that produces electricity from the chemical interaction of
hydrogen and oxygen. Hydrogen gas and oxygen gas (from ambient air) are
brought together after traversing a membrane. The by-products of the
reaction are electricity, pure water, and heat.
Performance characteristics are similar
to those of electric vehicles. Experts worldwide view fuel cells as the
best eventual replacement for the ICE!
|
|
Advantages
of Hydrogen Fuel Cell Cars:
-
zero-emissions when hydrogen is used
as the fuel (sadly, carmakers are looking to obtain hydrogen through
reformation of hydrocarbon fuels (i.e. gasoline, methanol) and this
reformation emits air pollution);
-
quiet; low operating costs (similar
to EV's);
-
extremely efficient (90% compared to
30% for gas engines), although under load the efficiency decreases
to 40 - 50%.
Disadvantages of Hydrogen Fuel
Cell Cars:
-
relatively new technology - not yet
consumer available (first model not due out until 2004 or
2005);
-
storage methods (see below) still
being developed, although high pressure CNG cylinders are long
tested and proven extremely safe and reliable, as well as
inexpensive;
-
refuelling infrastructure not yet in
place
|
How Expensive is the Petrol Car vs the Hydrogen
Car?
Sure, on the face of it, Hydrogen is the most expensive
fuel option for car transportation today. But what is the REAL cost of our
heavy reliance on the Internal Combustion Petrol Engine - a highly inefficient
and polluting form of transportation?
And what will be the price for our children? Are we robbing
the future of our children for our current wasteful and extremely polluting
way of life today? Petrol Cars are a major factor in life threatening issues
like Pollution and Global Warming. A Hydrogen Fuel Cell car should be in every
garage!
A Hydrogen Car in Every Garage! Significant
financial assistance and policy leadership is required from our Governments to
make the Fuel Cell car a reality and this is unlikely to happen without
substantial pressure from the public.
With our combined voice, we could be driving one of these futuristic
cars within 5 years. Without significant demands from the public, the earliest
you are likely to experience one of these cars will be on the backseat of one of
your children's or grandchildren's cars - 10 to 20 years from now!
Get Active for a Better Future! - Lobby Your Local
Parliamentarian to Introduce Research & Development Funding for Hydrogen
Fuel Cell Cars. Below is a link to a great online directory of government
bodies around the world - send them an email or a letter.
Governments on the
Internet (an online directory with more than 17,000 entries from more than
220 countries and territories around the world).
|
