Carbon Emissions

Hydrogen Fuel Cell For Cars – What You Need to Know

So what is the basic concept of the hydrogen fuel cell? Well if you have absolutely no idea how it works, its really quite simple. Water contains hydrogen and oxygen as its chemical makeup. If you can find a way to break up the chemical bond that links hydrogen and oxygen, then you can use that hydrogen as a source of combustible energy.

Basically the process occurs by use of what is known as electrolysis. When you use two small strips of metal and charge them with electricity, then a chemical reaction occurs, and the result is the splitting of the hydrogen and oxygen off into separate atoms, detached from their original molecular state.

So if that is how simple this concept is, then why has it only just come to light in a big way now? Well unfortunately, because of the potential harm it could cause to the oil industry, it has been suppressed for a long time. In fact, the technology has been around since as early as the seventies.

Well if it works and is now available to the public, how can the average joe benefit from it? Well obviously if you can run your car partially on hydrogen, as a hybrid vehicle, then you can save yourself masses in fuel costs. Not only that but you will be cutting down your carbon emissions by a large percentage. The actual percentage depends on the type of car that you install it into, obviously a truck will still have larger CO2 emissions than a hatchback or sedan.

For someone who is interested in this technology and wants to start using it for themselves, there are a few different options. They all involve an initial investment, but it is possible to get your car converted for under $250. Lets run through the different options available. So first of all, there is the option to buy a brand new or second hand hybrid car, most large car manufacturers are now producing these. This option is obviously quite expensive, with most new hybrids ranging from $30 000 and up. Secondly there are companies who sell commercial hydrogen car kits, these are quite well put together and if you have the money are probably a very good option. Again not the cheapest method.

So what is the cheapest method then? Well the answer to that lies on the internet. A few different companies and independent engineers have created DIY guides, which allow you to convert your car to run on water by creating your own kit out of basic and very affordable materials. These kits use the same concept as the commercially produced conversion kits, but are produced at a lot cheaper costs, about $200-$250 with the instructional guide included. The only drawback of this option is that you need to have a bit of knowledge and hands on experience with mechanics in order to manage the installation.

The cheapest option for those not mechanical would be get one of the DIY guides and the parts needed to produce the kit, and then simply have your mechanic install it for you. This would still be much much cheaper than any of the other options, and you would be assured quality installation from someone who actually knows what they are doing.

For those interested in converting their car into a hydrogen hybrid that don’t want to spend too much money, then there are two main guides that I can recommend. The two top guides are Water4Gas and Run Your Car On Water. Water4Gas is more detailed but more expensive. Where as Run Your Car On Water gives you the basic guide, without all the bonuses, for half the price of Water4Gas.

By: Nick Earl

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Sunday, November 29th, 2009 Automotive No Comments