Hydrogen Power Blog

Abhishek Agarwal


A lot of talk has been going around in this country about use of alternative fuels and particularly a lot has been said about the hydrogen fuel that runs on hydrogen fuel cells. But do we have a clear understanding of how the hydrogen fuel cell works? Definition can be made very simple or on other hand it can be explained in a very complicated terminology .In the cell the conversion of chemicals namely oxygen and hydrogen into water happens in the fuel cell and in this process electricity is produced. A battery is a similar device that works on the electrochemical principle. A battery stores all its chemical inside its compartment and conversion of these chemicals happens inside resulting in the production of electricity. After the chemical inside finishes the battery stops producing electricity and is considered “dead”. Eventually it is either thrown or recharged.

Fuel Cell: Does it “die”

Unlike the battery, in case of fuel cell the cell never dies – as long as the flow of chemical is maintained in the cell, the fuel cell continues producing electricity .Oxygen and hydrogen are the most commonly used chemicals in the fuel cell. The end product of hydrogen fuel cell is water vapor and that is a big advantage. There are many types of fuel cell which has been produced; main among them is the polymer exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC). The department of energy is concentration on this type as it has the potential of being used for vehicle applications

The positive thing about PEMFC is that it has a high power density with relatively lower operating temperature (ranging from sixty to eighty degrees Celsius or 140-176 degrees Fahrenheit) .Due to its low operating temperature it doesn’t take much time for the fuel cell to warm up and start producing electricity. That is big plus point for PEMFC.

Direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) is another promising prospect that can be used for powering the vehicles. This is another type of fuel cell that has similar feature with regard to operating temperature. But they are relatively less efficient and are more expensive. This is due to the fact that DMFC requires a good quantity of platinum to act as a catalyst

Hydrogen Fuel Cell: An Emerging Technology

Hydrogen fuel is the new generation of alternative energy. This is due to the fact that hydrogen fuel cell burns cleanly and also runs efficiently .Thus the dreams and hopes of supporters of alternative fuel energy seems to be coming alive They can see a clean and an efficient vehicle that runs fantastic and has very low and safe emission .

Nick Tart


Whenever you hear a conversation or read an article about hydrogen fuel cells, you tend not to listen because you do not want your mind to be boggled. But the truth is, hydrogen fuel cells are a lot simpler than most other technology.

 

Simply put, a fuel cell is a device that generates electricity through chemical reactions. In a hydrogen fuel cell, the primary reactant is, obviously, hydrogen. As hydrogen is being pumped into the fuel cells, an electrode strips the atom of its electrons and the hydrogen becomes ionized. The stripped electrons then create an electrical current. At the same time, oxygen filters into the fuel cell. Combining with the hydrogen, the two create a chemical reaction which in turn forms water.

 

The greatest appeal of hydrogen fuel cells i that they generate electricity while causing esentially no pollution. So why not generate all electricity through hydrogen fuel cells? There are two main reasons.

 



One fuel cell does not generate very much electricity. In order for fuel cells to be useful there must be several of them working together to generate a significant amount of energy. Typically hydrogen fuel cells are assembled into a stack.

Fuel cells are relatively expensive. Compared to other sources of producing energy, fuel cells are financially impractical. Costing about $1000 per kilowatt of electric power output, not many businesses can justify using this technology.



 

However, scientists are continually working on ways to improve the efficiencies and lessen the costs associated with hydrogen fuel cells. If they are successful, hydrogen fuel cell technology will undoubtedly be the primary energy source throughout the world!

Stephen Lutz


So, you’ve seen posts on your favorite web forum or blog about this hydrogen power thing; you’ve watched the videos on YouTube; at this point you’re curious, but skeptical – great! That’s exactly where you should be. But now you’ve made your way here to More M.P.G. Plus™, and we are going to remove any last bit of doubt. By the time you’re done reading, you will know the truth: that you, too, can save hundreds of dollars, by installing our simple HHO Generator kit in your car or truck. People across the globe are discovering the power of hydrogen, and seeing benefits of 10%, 20%, 30%, even 50% increases in fuel efficiency!

RUN YOUR CAR ON WATER? Isn’t that just science fiction?

Not any more! By putting a hydrogen generator in your vehicle, you can SAVE hundreds of dollars a year in gasoline! Keep reading to learn how to avoid the next outrageous hike in gas prices…

Join the growing number of people who drive with confidence, knowing that you have the newest hybrid technology available today, while cleaning your engine inside, cutting emissions outside, AN

When your engine is running, the fuel cell produces hydrogen and oxygen (called HHO, or Brown’s gas) “on demand”. The HHO gas is injected into your vehicle’s air intake system, making its way to the cylinders to mix with the air and gasoline vapor already present. When the spark plug fires, the HHO ignites along with the fuel, causing the fuel to burn faster – and producing nothing but water vapor in the exhaust! By accelerating the fuel-air burn, the hydrogen causes your car to burn the gasoline more completely, increasing your overall fuel efficiency. By producing nothing but water vapor in the exhaust, there is no additional risk to the environment.

Q.: Isn’t hydrogen dangerous? How can you contain it safely? A.: The Generator only produces Brown’s gas on demand, when the engine is running. No hydrogen is actually stored, so there are no safety issues like those involved with the storage of hydrogen under pressure. This is not pure hydrogen but HHO, so provided you install the system properly, use the same precautions around the system you would use around gasoline or any other flammable substance, and properly maintain the system, you should have no problems. Q.: What about conservation of energy? How can you claim to get more energy from the system (in terms of fuel efficiency), when you need to expend energy producing hydrogen? A.: The system doesn’t actually generate more energy, or power, than what is put in. But what it does, is increase the efficiency of the system overall. Your engine won’t become more powerful – but it will be more fuel-efficient.

Simple math for those who want to know: The best internal combustion engine is 18% efficient, 20% on a good day. The process of brute force electrolysis today has been pushed to about 85% Faraday. Note: Based on the caloric energy available from burning hydrogen, by using Faraday’s “Law” to translate from electrical energy it is estimated that 100% efficient hydrogen electrolysis is achieved by creating somewhere between 5.5-7.5 milliliters of gas per minute per watt of energy consumed. Members of our research group have run the numbers several ways which all seem to point to around 7.0 m/m/w. Many of our cells have operated as high as 6mmw or roughly 85% efficient The product of electrolysis is HHO which has it’s own energy value, up to 85% of what we put in.

If all we considered was the return of energy value when we inject the HHO as a supplement to gasoline, then yes; Conservation of energy applies.

HOWEVER!

HHO as an additive does more than return 85% of the energy we put in to create it. It’s properties enhance the slow burning gasoline, speeding up the rate of combustion, causing much more of the total combustion process to be translated into mechanical energy rather than being lost as waste heat out the tail pipe, raising the efficiency of the total system. Returning to the simple math…

Let’s say we’re able to translate just 10% more of the total system energy to mechanical energy. We have still not violated conservation of energy, only raised the total system efficiency to 28%. But that’s an increase of 55%!!! Now deduct the energy loss of 15% to create the HHO that made this possible and you still end up with a total net gain of 40%!

This is not rocket science – it’s simple math, and it works. The reality is, some are getting even more: up to 35% mechanical efficiency, 94% gain, -15% to create the HHO, 79% total net gain. That’s 54 MPG on a car that started out at 30. People are doing this. It is working. The move is on and there is no stopping it.

Questions About HHO Production

Distilled water alone will not conduct electricity sufficiently for electrolysis at automobile voltages, impurities in tap water and other natural sources are responsible for making water conductive. In order to perform electrolysis, we use distilled water to keep our cells clean from contaminants that will eventually dirty up or damage our cell and reduce production, they may also generate unwanted by-products. The use of a suitable catalyst allows our distilled water to conduct electricity.

The following catalysts are more commonly used, please note that this is not a list of the best catalysts, merely those that are generally used. To follow is a discussion on the suitability of each.

Salt:

This is a bad catalyst to use, it will facilitate a reaction but will produce chlorine gas as a by-product. Salt will also cause damage to your electrodes over time. Chlorine gas can kill you, please avoid using salt or baking soda.

Baking Soda:

Baking Soda will create carbon monoxide and dioxide gas and damage your electrodes eventually. This stuff can kill you. Please avoid baking soda.

Potassium Hydroxide:

Potassium Hydroxide, or KOH to use the chemical name, is by far one of the best catalysts for electrolysis. KOH remains neutral in electrolysis in that it is not consumed by the process, in other words, as your electrolyte level goes down all you will need to do is add more distilled water.

Be very careful with Potassium Hydroxide, it will burn if it gets onto your skin. Always keep some vinegar around as a rinsing agent, should you spill any on your skin.

The safest way to use KOH is to collect a small amount of your distilled water in a glass beaker or jar, and then add the KOH to the water. DO NOT do this the other way around and add the water to the KOH! After you have added your KOH to your draw-off of water, pour the water back into the generator. This method will aid the dispersal of the catalyst around your electrolyte.

Sodium Hydroxide:

Sodium Hydroxide, or NaOH to use the chemical name, is another decent and popular catalyst, commonly used in drain cleaner. Some drain cleaners state 100% Sodium Hydroxide on the container and are suitable to use as a source of this catalyst. You should handle and add the NaOH in the same manner as KOH. NaOH can be more difficult to dissolve, this can be eased by adding it to hot distilled water.

Sodium Hydroxide, like KOH, will not used up by the reaction so will need to be topped off.

Vinegar:

Distilled White Vinegar may be used as an electrolyte solution on its own, it contains generally about 95% distilled water. In use it will require stronger cell voltages to provide high production and will break down, leaving a residue which must be cleaned out of your cell periodically.

Conclusions

From my own experiences, and those of others, I would recommend using Potassium Hydroxide as your catalyst. It is commonly used in the making of soap and can be obtained from cosmetic suppliers. KOH is also referred to as “Potash”.

For Cold Weather

From my own experience and others I would recommend using HEET, in the yellow bottle, adding a small amount to your KOH , water mix and it will not freeze. The alternative that also works is to use -30 degree windshield washer solution. I think the washer solvent is the same thing as you make adding HEET to distilled water. When temperatures here in Minnesota got below -20 degrees I simply left my system turned off. I also covered my radiator to ensure my engine temperature got up to and stayed around 200 degrees. Anything under 190 degrees would drive my MPG down at least 30%.

Abhishek Agarwal


The need of having alternative energy sources was felt by us decades ago. University of Florida Statue and Shell Energy have jointly conducted research on trees and biomass by planting Energy Crop Plantation which is the largest in the United States. Over 250,000 native Cottonwoods and the non-invasive eucalyptus together with different row crops like soybeans sprawl over 130 acres of the Energy Crop Plantation area. The University undertook research in collaboration with some agencies and some local groups who are striving to develop future alternative energy sources independent of fossil fuels. These include The Common Purpose Institute, Shell, Department of Energy of US and various individual groups. As an outcome of their ceaseless efforts, this group of super trees got created.

These energy crops which are also called closed loop biomass are fast-growing crops and are good biomass energy supply sources. This research based project is committed to growing crops and biomass energy supplies processing from fast-growing energy crops or closed loop biomass. The research is primarily on the planting of energy crops which are fast-growing crops called closed loop biomass and processing of resultant supplies of biomass energy. The project aims at developing power wood-pulp plants which provide wood-fiber; providing clean biogas to the industries; ethanol development from plants such as sugarcane; and biodiesel fuel production from crops like soybeans.

The petroleum over-dependence of our nation for power has given rise to an urgent need for an alternative energy source to be developed. Penn State University has undertaken special research to develop anl alternative energy source which is practical and which will not cause an increase in the pollution like petroleum products. Such focused research is taking us to a hydrogen-fuelled economy, when the hydrogen power would be a sustainable and clean and endlessly renewable energy resource. This Hydrogen energy can be obtained from crop plants and water and can be continuously renewed. The Penn University seeks to build this sustainable energy resource within the US’ own infrastructure. This assumes great importance in a situation where the world’s supply of oil peaks and ultimately begins to decline. Fuel cells powered by Hydrogen need to be developed commercially to be used as substitutes or together with conventional combustion engines for motor vehicles.

President Bush recently envisaged the concentrated research and development of fivecenters of Sun Grant for this alternative energy initiative. One such center is Oregon State University with government grants of $80 million to be spread over four years span for this special mission. Thus OSU will be the leader in the research for alternate energy sources since it represents Pacific Islands, the US’ Pacific Territories, and the nine Western states. Various teams of leading scientists are doing specific research on alternative energy. One of the projects which deserves a mention here is how to convert straw-like products into an efficient and renewable source of biomass fuel and yet another project is conversion of wood fibers into efficient liquid fuel. According to Edward Ray, OSU President, this pioneering work being done by the their Sun Grant Center is the direct answer to the challenge given by President Bush for achieving energy independence.

James Nash


There are several ways of making hydrogen in the UK. The cheapest way is to convert natural gas into hydrogen by a process called reformation. Reforming natural gas into hydrogen produces CO2 but no more than burning it. However, using the hydrogen in a hydrogen fuelcell or using the natural gas itself in a natural gas fuelcell produces at least twice as much useful energy for a given amount of natural gas than burning it (in a natural gas fuelcell the natural gas is ‘reformed’ inside the fuelcell).

Therefore to get the best use from natural gas we should endeavour to use it in fuelcells, either directly or after reforming it into hydrogen. Natural gas fuelcells will be a good bridge technology to a hydrogen-powered world.

Natural gas, i.e. methane, is a powerful greenhouse gas, 10 times more effective than CO2, so we should use up all the natural gas on Earth by burning it or using it in fuelcells before it escapes and adds to global warming. Commercial pressures are achieving this anyway and in due course natural gas will become scarce so we need to develop alternative ways to make hydrogen.

We should not rely on converting coal into hydrogen because obviously coal is not a greenhouse gas so to create CO2 as a by-product of converting coal into hydrogen is not justifiable on greenhouse gas priorities. However to convert coal into a gas suitable for use in fuelcells is better from a minimising the production of atmospheric CO2 point of view than simply burning coal as we used to. This technology may be a good way ahead for India and China to use some of their vast coal deposits.

But the UK and Europe cannot go back to increasing our reliance on coal because most of the CO2 emissions savings to date have been achieved by switching from coal to natural gas! If we did go back to coal we would be back to where we started in 1990. Nuclear power is not acceptable. So we do need to get on with developing alternative ways of making hydrogen. In the UK and Europe we are becoming dependent on natural gas which because of increasing use is going to become progressively more expensive and will eventually run out.

There are four main alternative methods available at present for producing hydrogen without producing CO2 or adding more CO2 to the atmosphere:

1) The electrolysis of water using electricity from renewable resources such as wind power, hydro-power and solar photo-voltaic cells. This method produces no carbon dioxide.

2) The chemical or thermal reformation of biomass feedstocks such as SRC (short rotation coppice) wood chips or methanol manufactured from biomass. This method releases carbon dioxide but it is all recycled by the growth of more biomass.

3) The biological reformation of biomass using micro-organisms. This method releases carbon dioxide but it is all recycled by the growth of more biomass.

4) The direct splitting of water using light with special catalysts or extreme heat, this method produces no carbon dioxide.

Of these four processes only the production of hydrogen by the electrolysis of water using electricity generated by offshore wind power is viable on a large multigigawatt scale in the UK.

Offshore wind power is the only large (ie multigigawatts) UK resource of clean renewable electricity that is likely to be available in the near future. Sufficient onshore wind power capacity is unlikely to get planning permission and the other renewables do not have sufficient capacity. The hydrogen will be manufactured in factories at the coast.

The hydrogen produced will be used for road transport applications, initially urban buses and, later on, cars.

In due course if solar-photo-voltaic (PV) electricity generation in North Africa becomes established, hydrogen, manufactured by the electrolysis of water, using the solar-PV electricity in North Africa, could be transmitted by gas pipelines across the Mediterranean Sea and throughout Europe and north into the UK. The hydrogen could then be used as a transport fuel or it could be converted into electricity and heat in fuelcell based cogeneration systems. Production could start in S. E. Spain and then expand into North Africa.

Assuming these developments take place then as a first step, the hydrogen from North Africa could be injected into the existing natural gas pipelines supplying the existing UK natural gas grid to enhance the energy value of the natural gas. This already occurs in the USA. Before we changed over to North Sea natural gas, we used town gas made from coal which was over 50% hydrogen.

The enriched natural gas will continue to be burned in existing central heating systems and cookers but new domestic systems will be based on fuelcells for the cogeneration of electricity and heat.

If hydrogen injection into existing natural gas pipelines is adopted, then only a small proportion of hydrogen can be injected because all of the gas appliances running on natural gas are sensitive to the proportions of different gasses in the gas mixture supplied. However, the volume of hydrogen to be delivered using this technique will be quite small relative to the volume of natural gas being delivered and so the gas mixture would be acceptable. It would not be possible however to keep increasing the proportion of hydrogen injected as hydrogen production increases.

What gas injection offers is an early route to market for the initial small scale production of hydrogen before separate hydrogen pipelines are built. When hydrogen becomes the main energy carrier, then sections of the natural gas grid will be changed to 100% hydrogen and the existing gas appliances in the area served will have to be adjusted to burn hydrogen. This is what happened when we changed from town gas – which was over 50% hydrogen – to North Sea gas.

Hydrogen injection is a way of integrating hydrogen into the existing natural gas system. It enables existing appliances to be used to burn the hydrogen and so provide a market for early production. The enriched natural gas can also be used to run natural gas fuelcells or can be reformed at the point of use to give hydrogen for use in hydrogen fuelcells. This enables fuelcells to be introduced alongside existing appliances all using the same fuel supply system.

Eventually the whole country will go over to 100% hydrogen, the gas grid will be increased in capacity and it is possible that the national electricity grid will no longer be required as the generation of electricity becomes locally based, using hydrogen fuelcell cogeneration systems.

The hydrogen-powered cogeneration systems will range in size from less than 1 kW up to 100s of MW. These systems will be located in single homes, large buildings or serve whole communities from a cogeneration centre.

Another likely route of hydrogen supply to the UK will be as liquid hydrogen delivered by ocean tanker from Canada, where hydroelectricity will be used to electrolyse water, or from Iceland where electricity from geothermal power may be used to electrolyse water.

In the early 1990s the EEC developed at the Joint Research Centre at Ispra in Italy the concept of the Euro-Quebec Hydro-Hydrogen Project for transporting liquid hydrogen across the Atlantic in special ship mounted barges. And in Iceland there is now an Icelandic government project to change the whole country over to a hydrogen-based energy system.

In due course there will be a world-wide trade in liquid hydrogen that will underpin each individual country’s pipeline based systems. Liquid hydrogen supplies will provide security of supply and boost availability in winter by moving surplus summer production of hydrogen around the world. If there is an accident with a hydrogen tanker the hydrogen will boil away with no pollution. The process of liquefaction dissipates about 30% of the energy in the hydrogen, so pipeline distribution of hydrogen as a gas will always be the preferred option for bulk distribution.

David J Hughes


Due to a number of major factors, including the state of the economy, the climate crises and the general higher visibility of environmental issues, renewable energy has become a significant and high profile subject. Now, more than at any time in history, there is a growing awareness of our impact on the planet and consequently a growing movement toward environmental responsibility through the use of renewable energy.

The fundamental shift toward using renewable energy is not just motivated by those who are environmentally conscious and who want to do their part to stabilize the climate. Renewable energy is also attractive to the countless people out there who are interested in saving money on heating and cooling bills by using alternative energy sources. Regardless of the motivation, the result is the same; unprecedented numbers of average people are looking into all types of renewable energy in order to save money on household energy bills. Many have numerous questions about renewable energy. Here are some renewable energy FAQs:

What is renewable energy?

Renewable energy is generally defined as energy that is unlimited in quantity and which renews or regenerates itself without any input from humans.

What are the different types of renewable energy?

Solar power: one of the most popular and reliable forms of renewable energy available, today, solar power is collected by solar panels that have numerous solar cells that store the sun’s energy and convert it into electricity, just like a traditional battery. Solar panels are usually installed on the roofs of structures and are linked together and then tied into the house’s electrical wiring system. Many people find that having a solar power system saves them dramatic amounts of money in heating and cooling bills and some people are even able to disconnect entirely from the electric company and live off the grid on solar power.

Wind power: wind power comes from wind generators that capture the kinetic energy from the wind and translate it into electricity. This is essentially accomplished with propellers mounted on towers. As the wind turns the propellers, electricity is generated. Many electrical cooperatives have built large farms of massive wind generators, but a scaled down version is available for residential use.

Hydrogen furnace: while somewhat different and much more complex than solar or wind power, hydrogen furnaces are just beginning to become proven and reliable technology to create unlimited sources of energy. Essentially, the hydrogen furnace produces energy from waste material by separating the hydrogen molecules. Hydrogen furnaces have posed massive engineering problems for years, but recently there have been breakthroughs that have allowed this technology to become viable.



Can one save money by using renewable energy?

If done correctly, one could save thousands of dollars per year in electricity costs by using renewable energy technology such as solar or wind power. In many places, solar panels can provide the majority if not all of the electricity necessary to power a household every month. The cost of installing a renewable energy system is often recaptured in savings in the first year.