Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Hydrogen Gas In Cars - A Viable Alternative To Gasoline

By Adrian Fletcher

Your vehicle is probably running on ethanol-enhanced gasoline as this is currently the cheapest fuel you will find at the gas station. Ethanol has been touted as the answer to reducing Americas dependence on foreign oil supplies as well as reduction in greenhouse gas emission levels. People are beginning to question this proposition as producing swathes of crops is possibly as inefficient as the fuel it produces. Ethanol is a fuel that cars have been using to run without optimization for a long time, so obviously its not the right choice. A new contender for better fuel economy is using hydrogen gas in cars.

Using hydrogen gas in cars gives numerous more advantages over ethanol and gasoline fuels. Hydrogen gas is a better and cleaner burning fuel leaving no carbon behind but emits only water vapor consisting mainly of majority of nitrogen. Nitrogen makes up more than three-quarters of the air we inhale. Hydrogen fuel roughly gives two-thirds better fuel economy at half the cost of gasoline.

The two major setbacks of changing over to hydrogen gas in cars are the system within the car and fuel availability. If you do not live within close proximity to a hydrogen generation plant (and who does ?), chances are there are probably no stations where you can purchase commercially produced hydrogen to fuel your car with.

The use of hydrogen gas in cars is currently restricted while traveling long distances out on the road. This is partly due to the present inadequacy of the technology for generating significantly large amounts of this fuel right on the vehicle. Some car manufacturers planning to offer fully hydrogen-powered cars are also planning home hydrogen gas fueling stations. A home hydrogen gas fueling station may possibly not only fuel your car but power your house too, which will offer big savings both monetarily and environmentally.

A few viable alternatives exist for converting your gas-powered car into a hydrogen fuel hybrid which will let you benefit from both increases in fuel economy and a big reduction in the car's emissions. There are kits for sale that output a small amount of hydrogen fuel. They do this by using a supply of water and the electricity from your car to produce hydrogen and mixing that with the existing gas that is already powering the car. Such kits can be simple models that can be purchased for a few hundred dollars, or specialty deluxe models that will set you back thousands.

When hydrogen fuel production begins on mega scale and will be easily available in big volume, we will definitely begin to see new inventions when we start using hydrogen gas in cars. Indeed, BMW are publicizing their work on a hydrogen fuel car but it is only a one off prototype without any commercial potential to date. Before that date when this becomes commercially viable arrives, home-made kits that use readily available parts and plain water can help the mechanically-inclined to get a long up on the technology. Instructions for creating your own water to gas kits are found on the internet through sites such as Water4gas.

It's not only do-it-yourselfers and automobile manufacturers paying attention to hydrogen gas in cars, energy companies and even governments are now exploring hydrogen fuel technology. With more interest along with financial resources to back up continuing research, the day may soon come that hydrogen gas will be the fuel of choice powering your car. - 2368

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