[ 12 November 2004: Message edited by: Willowdale Wizard ]

"Though the buzz of the HY-LIGHT as it drives through the streets is gentle, this four-seater turns out to have outstanding power. It accelerates from standstill to 100 km/h in less than twelve seconds – but there’s no roar of exhaust from its rear end. The HY-LIGHT runs on a system of fuel cells, using hydrogen and oxygen to produce electric current. Steam is the one and only exhaust product from this car – no trace of nitrogen oxides, greenhouse gases or aerosol particles"

http://www.fuelcellsworks.com/Supppage1290.html

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Originally posted by Mike Keenan:
What about the idea of solar/battery/internal combustion 3-way hybrids as a way of easing solar panels into car designs (and further reducing fuel consumption)?

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Originally posted by gula:
How about this fuel-cell car. It looks pretty too.

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Here is an amusing article on "biodiesel" usage.

Cooking oil fuel in Wales

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Originally posted by Rufus Polson:
[QB]In terms of energy source, fuel cells are just a variant on electric. Instead of using electricity to charge batteries, you're using electricity to make hydrogen.

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According to this article they would use solar cells, but alas, it won't be tomorrow.

"Michelin says Hi-Light is an example of the non-polluting vehicle-it runs on hydrogen produced by electrolysis using solar cells- which might be practical by around 2020."

I don't know enough about non-electrolytic means of producing hydrogen to know how efficient they are. I've heard of some systems that can separate hydrogen from hydrocarbons and alcohols... producing CO₂ as a byproduct. Might be acceptable if it came from biological sources (which is, in effect, recycling CO₂). I can't see it yielding enough to sustain the kind of industry envisioned by hydrogen enthusiasts, though.

A successful electrolytic hydrogen industry would be feasible if, and only if, we could find a virtually unlimited source of electricity (fusion and/or orbital solar). Until then, we should look at reducing our energy consumption. This means increased efficiency as well as responsible use.

Maybe we should reclaim the slogan "wise use" from the anti-environmentalists, and apply it to technology.

[ 12 November 2004: Message edited by: Mike Keenan ]

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SHEC labs is developing a process that uses sunlight and water to produce hydrogen. The process relies on a thermal-catalytic cycle which requires heat as an input. Instead of burning fossil fuels to create the necessary process heat (and generating greenhouse gases in the process), SHEC labs intends to employ the heat of the sun by using mirrors to focus sunlight onto a chemical reactor.

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" Throughout Fall 2003 and Winter 2004, we have been producing about 100 litres per week with our small-scale processing system. We are currently nearing the completion of a medium sized processing system which will produce an average of between 1000 and 3000 litres of Biodiesel per week. That is enough to potentially fuel the entire UBC Plant Operations diesel fleet. Actual percentage used will depend on our engine testing program."

http://www.eya.ca/biodiesel/

I don't know why sometimes the url button on the bottom doesn't work. Here's the url of a google search re ubc biodiesel via tinyurl then.

http://tinyurl.com/4ktne

[ 13 November 2004: Message edited by: VanLuke ]

I am not a scientist and I don't know how practical this is. However, this way of "producing" was not mentionned above.

An extract from the hit on the top:

"Berkeley scientist says discovery is like 'striking oil'

Researchers have found a metabolic switch in algae that allows the primitive plants to produce hydrogen gas - a discovery that could ultimately result in a vast source of cheap, pollution-free fuel. Hydrogen, which can be used as a clean-burning fuel in cars and power plants, is virtually limitless in availability, because it is part of the water molecule. It is a candidate to become the world's primary fuel in coming decades. But until now, it was obtainable in quantity only through relatively expensive extraction procedures involving the electrolysis of water or processing natural gas.

The breakthrough, by scientists at the University of California at Berkeley and the U.S. Department of Energy, would make possible the commercial production of hydrogen gas by photosynthesis in tanks, ponds or the open ocean. “I guess it's the equivalent of striking oil,” said Tasios Melis, a microbial biology professor at UC Berkeley. “It was enormously exciting. It was unbelievable.” Melis made the discovery with UC Berkeley researcher Liping Zhang and with Michael Seibert, Maria Ghiardi and Marc Forestier of the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, a Department of Energy project in Golden, Colo. The team's findings appear in this month's issue of Plant Physiology, a science journal...."

From the next hit:

"....Melis found he could reprogram photosynthesis and stifle internal oxygen flow by depriving the plant cells of sulfur. Under these conditions, the algae pumped out hydrogen for days at a time - lots of it. "We thought maybe we'd get a little hydrogen," Melis says. "But it came out in bulk amounts." An acre of his pond scum, he calculates, could produce enough H2 to power a car from Sacramento to Seattle - and theoretically much farther...

The algae-hydrogen system generates electricity that costs about 31 cents a kilowatt-hour. Natural gas-fired juice runs a nickel or less. But a solution is in sight. Melis' team recently uncovered the key bottleneck in its green biomachine: Hydrogenase is present in only tiny amounts. By genetically engineering algae that express high levels of the enzyme, the team expects to double hydrogen output."

The genetic engineering may, or may not, be an issue.

http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/10.04/mustread.html?pg=5

From another hit:

"... DIY Algae/Hydrogen Kit was a first time collaboration between Amy Franceschini and Jonathan Meuser. Currently scientists are testing and generating strains of algae to determine which one most efficiently produces hydrogen in a process called "biophotolysis". This is an exciting sector of research, but most of the activity takes place under highly controlled environments in laboratories within universities. Amy was interested in creating a "backyard/DIY" model which would allow people (not only scientists) to produce hydrogen. The notion of people producing their own power is exciting. Researcher, Jonathan Meuser used this opportunity to exhibit a model of "biophotolysis" to test a system in his backyard. His test was a success, in that it produced hydrogen and could demonstrate the process using off the shelf and found supplies...."

The Canadian Teamsters Union has apparently endorsed the idea and had invited a researcher on the issue from the Mountain equipment Co-op in Vancouver to speak at their convention.

Apparently, bio-diesel conversion is relatively inexpensive because it works basically the same way as fossil fuel diesel.

But I agree with others on this string that we should also be pushing solar battery technology, hydrogen-electrolysis and Ballards to the max. Obviously, this requires greater re-fit costs. But in the long run it pays off both in job creation, fuel costs and a healthier environment (meaning better human health as well).

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It was a nice irony, because, as the cooking-oil driver discovered when he was fined £500 and had his car impounded, the government is not amused by cheap alternative fuel. Diesel is relatively pricey because a large chunk of the cost is made up by duty. Cooking oil carries no such tax. But if it is put to use in a petrol tank, duty is due.

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