Free Hydrogen?

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Papoose

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Okay.. my mom and I were watching How it Works and she started b****ing about how I have such a horrible attitude and I fail at life and everything... although she made up for it by actually shutting up after less than half an hour...

But that's not my point. My point is, since I heard about Hydrogen fuel cells about 3 or 4 years ago, I've been wondering... is it possible to build a car with a hydrogen fuel cell and where the engine would be on a regular car, a device to convert air to hydrogen? I know that there are a few ways to convert air and/or water to hydrogen, so this could be possible. The one way I remember is this:

Take water and put a piece of zinc in it, and it will produce hydrogen gas bubbles.

If that method was used, there could be a car with a water condensor behind the grille (I think cooling it down would work), and the water could be pumped into a tank lined on the inside with zinc, then the hydrogen gas could be channeled into a tank and cooled into liquid. Or you could just pour water into the tank.

I know it is sketchy, but do you think this could work? And I suppose I should thank my mom by provoking me to actually take action on this....

Discuss.
 
Among other issues, hydrogen gas carries very little energy per volume (gasoline carries a ton). Therefore, you need a lot of it to power a car. There is no way an on-board system would be able to meet the energy demands. Plus, if it were that simple, it would have been done a thousand times already.
 
Hmm... ah well. I was wondering how come no one thought of it before. About a year before Lexus came out with swiveling headlights, I had designed them and wondered how come it was never thought of before, only to be scolded by my dad for not knowing about the Tucker Torpedo. (that is the one with the swiveling light, right?)
 
Hydrogen fuel cells have been tested in several cars, most notably the Honda FCX which has been produced in small numbers for lease. Currently there is no practical means to create hydrogen on board an average sized vehicle so fuel cell vehicles rely on hydrogen "filling stations" which may use any number of methods to generate Hydrogen (usually through electrolysis)

hope that clears it up
 
Papoose
But that's not my point. My point is, since I heard about Hydrogen fuel cells about 3 or 4 years ago, I've been wondering... is it possible to build a car with a hydrogen fuel cell and where the engine would be on a regular car, a device to convert air to hydrogen? I know that there are a few ways to convert air and/or water to hydrogen, so this could be possible. The one way I remember is this:
Click to expand...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydrogen_vehicle

If that method was used, there could be a car with a water condensor behind the grille (I think cooling it down would work), and the water could be pumped into a tank lined on the inside with zinc, then the hydrogen gas could be channeled into a tank and cooled into liquid. Or you could just pour water into the tank.
Click to expand...

You put Hydrogen into the car? That might work too....

Papoose
Hmm... ah well. I was wondering how come no one thought of it before. About a year before Lexus came out with swiveling headlights, I had designed them and wondered how come it was never thought of before, only to be scolded by my dad for not knowing about the Tucker Torpedo. (that is the one with the swiveling light, right?)
Click to expand...

The famous car for it's swiveling headlights was the Citroen SM built in the 70s.
 
No, the SM did a lot of really cool things, but there was something earlier.. way earlier.

Yep, the Torpedo:

Wikipedia
Design studies for the Tucker included many advanced features. For example, the perimeter frame surrounded the vehicle for crash protection. The steering box was behind the front axle to protect the driver in a front-end accident. But numerous Tucker innovations were dropped. Magnesium wheels, disc brakes, swiveling headlights and a direct-drive torque converter transmission were all left on the drawing board due to high costs.
Click to expand...
 
Papoose
No, the SM did a lot of really cool things, but there was something earlier.. way earlier.
Click to expand...

I know. I just found it odd that nobody would mention the SM. That car was famous for it. I actually didn't know the Tucker did that until now.:dunce:
 
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