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Richard Casady

On Thu, 14 Aug 2008 01:49:11 -0400, wrote:

On Wed, 13 Aug 2008 12:28:36 -0400, hk wrote:

CNN is running several features today on hydrogen fuel cell cars, and
several times I've heard about a "large tank of hydrogen under the chassis."

One was a Mercedes. So, in the future will we have the new Mercedes
hydrogen powered Hindenburg car, from the wonderful German folk who made
dirigibles famous?

:)

Until someone figures out how to make hydrogen in any efficient manner
this is just a science fair project.

Electrolysis is quite efficient, although the electric power plant
that serves the hydrogen factory is not. The actual efficiency
is about the same as charging a battery, some 90+%.

If you are hydrolysing water you would be better off just using the
electricity directly. Hydrogen is just a battery, storing electrical
energy and not very efficiently.

Maybe. What do fuel cells weigh. Lead batteries are very heavy
and you use substantial ammounts of energy carrying them around.
I suspect that fuel cells would also be heavy but I don't have any
figures.

These hydrogen generators in your car scams assumes there is so much
wasted capacity in your engine/alternator that you can recycle some as
hydrogeny.

Using shaft work from a hydrogen fueled engine to make hydrogen is
ridiculous. If that would work, the thing would manufacture fuel from
nowhere. Perpetual motion machines are known to be impossible.

Casady