Berit Pegg-Karlsson in Polperro, Cornwall, is the Swedish-born director of the British-Scandinavian Association for Wind and Hydrogen Power, backed by the Pure Energy Trust, of which self-sufficiency writer John Seymour is the main trustee. Pegg-Karlsson plans to popularise in Britain the very successful hydrogen 'Welgas' experiment financed in the town of Harnosand by the Swedish steel industry, SAAB and other firms. In Harnosand, Olaf Tegstrom designed and lived in a house where the electricity came from a small computer-controlled Danish windmill in the garden. The electricity was used to electrolyse filtered water into its constituents, hydrogen and oxygen, with the hydrogen gas used for cooking and heating the house and as fuel for a SAAB car. The car is non-polluting as the exhaust consists almost entirely of water vapour, and the safe storage problem has been solved, with the gas absorbed to form a metal hydride and released as required. Indeed in West Berlin, thanks to government subsidies for fuels that did not cause acid rain, Daimler Benz has built a filling station where various converted vehicles can be filled with hydrogen, produced from town gas.
'The electricity was used to electrolyse filtered water into its constituents, hydrogen and oxygen, with the hydrogen gas used for cooking and heating the house and as fuel for a SAAB car'
Sooner or later, Pegg-Karlsson believes, hydrogen will become the world's prime provider of energy, a technological revolution that would solve the problem of atmospheric pollution, at the same time as gradually replacing nuclear power. Hydrogen is an excellent fuel with an energy content three to four times higher than oil, and it can be produced from all known energy sources, besides being a by-product of many industrial processes.
Having hosted seminars for scientists and others on the subject in Sweden, Pegg-Karlsson now wants to do the same in Britain, and the city council of Uppsala in Sweden is interested in forming links with a British city such as Bristol, to share ideas and to conduct joint hydrogen projects. The Pure Energy Trust is also attempting to obtain funding for a minibus to run on hydrogen derived from a 20kw wind turbine and electrolysis unit.
'Hydrogen power is Jules Vernes' old dream come true - using water as a fuel'
Pegg-Karlsson is enthusiastic about her Association's potential: 'Humanity can today create what a few years ago was thought of as a very distant future society. And it's all about positive development, caring for the earth and taking steps towards a sustainable future society. Hydrogen power is Jules Vernes' old dream come true - using water as a fuel. The technology is already available. It is largely a question of people and politicians taking brave decisions.'
Also working in the field of alternative, renewable energy sources is John Allan, who promotes ethical and environmental approaches to the subject. He can be contacted at Energy Solutions, 2 Clarence Place, London E5 8HN (tel 020 8986 3963; fax 020 8985 1379).
A hydrogen car at less than 1p a mileSummarised from an article in the Daily Mail by Michael Kemp and in the Times by Kevin Eason.
A new fuel cell, patented as the Laser-Cell-TM, costing £2,000, has been developed by Dr Roger Billings (who invented the first home personal computer and double-sided floppy disk). When his fuel cell is plugged into the electric mains it extracts hydrogen from water over an eight hour period and stores the gas harmlessly in powdered metals, where it cannot explode or ignite.
The fuel cell can then be switched into 'reverse' and turn the hydrogen into electricity to power the electric motor driving the car. Dr Billings' invention could have much wider applications, using hydrogen for home electrical needs and for trucks, buses, trains, boats, submarines and aircraft.
The cell is a third the size of a Fiesta petrol engine and has no moving parts, nothing to service and a life of over 250,000 miles. 60 to 80 per cent of the hydrogen is turned into electricity, compared with the fuel-to-power ratio of a petrol engine of 30 per cent.
'Fast and quiet, a hydrogen car costs less than 1p a mile to run and is also environmentally friendly. The only exhaust is water vapour'
Fast and quiet, a hydrogen car costs less than 1p a mile to run and is also environmentally friendly. The only exhaust is water vapour. A model using the new technology could be on sale for under £20,000 by 1993.
A petrol-driven Fiesta costs 33.5p a mile to run but in the prototype hydrogen vehicle, two gallons of water provide enough hydrogen for a 300-mile drive and the car has a potential top speed of 80mph.
Dr Roger Billings, Director, Academy of Science, Kansas, USA.
Hydrogen-powered cars to run on diesel not waterSummarised from an article by Jeremy Webb, entitled 'Electric cars may run on diesel', in New Scientist (Oct 14th 1996).
The first cars driven by fuel cells may not be all that green, as they are likely to use diesel as a source of their hydrogen. With the race on to put a non-polluting prototype into production, car designers want to know what fuel they will be using.
The ideal scenario is one in which electricity from solar panels and wind turbines is used to 'crack' water and produce hydrogen. (See above.) But in the short term it suffers from several drawbacks; public anxiety since the Hindenberg disaster about the safety of hydrogen is one obstacle, and there are also technical problems: storage tanks will need to be both large and sturdy, pushing up the price, and an efficient, readily available source of hydrogen is still some way off.
One option for the transitional period while hydrogen production and storage is made more efficient is to use a fuel such as methanol or natural gas, which can be processed in the car to make hydrogen. The disadvantage with both these fuels is that there is a very limited network of filling stations. And if hydrogen is likely to supersede them in a few years, nobody is likely to invest in expanding the network.
This leaves diesel, which can be partially oxidised in the car to produce hydrogen with negligible emissions of nitrogen oxides. (To reduce sulphur dioxides, sulphur would need to be removed at the refinery). But the real advantage is that filling stations can already handle diesel.
Whatever the fuel, "the creation of a new fuel infrastructure will have to be progressive," according to Keith Prater of Canadian company Ballard, producers of a fuel cell-driven bus. "There will have to be some government intervention to encourage it." He points to Vancouver, where ten years ago the taxis changed to burning natural gas. The infrastructure was minimal - just installed at depots. But then the state government began offering state subsidies to people who converted their cars to natural gas. "There are now natural gas stations all around the state, so taxis and cars can refuel anywhere."
Latest developments in Zero Emission Vehicle technologyAdapted extracts from an e-mail to the Institute by Ben Lane, an Energy and Transport consultant conducting research into hydrogen and other transport fuels which can be produced using renewable energy. Also includes information summarised from a story by Nick Nuttall, entitled 'Hydrogen cars will end smog', in The Times (Jan 7th 1997 and another by Rob Edwards, entitled 'A tank of the cold stuff', in New Scientist (Nov 23rd 1996).
California's Palm Desert Project is currently at work on a project showcasing the complete ZEV concept. A central filling station, supplying fully-renewable hydrogen produced from solar cells and wind-turbines, fuels a fleet of five personal cars (20km/h, range 32km), and three neighbourhood vehicles, (65 km/h, range 160km). The vehicles can refuel in less than 2 minutes and provide an equivalent of 130 mpg.
BMW has six hydrogen-fuelled cars on the road. It looks much like a conventional BMW. Indeed, the engine itself can even run on petrol on the occasions when the car is out of range of a hydrogen supply. Flicking a switch next to the gear lever, however, switches the fuel injection from petrol to hydrogen, stored in a parallel tank. The parallel set-up cannot quite compete with the petrol engine in its performance but, with a top speed of 210kph and 150 horsepower, it should be sufficient to satisfy all but the most impatient autobahn driver.
Most encouraging of all, according to Ben Lane, is Daimler-Benz's New Electric Car (NECAR), unveiled in May 1996. With a top speed of 110 km/h, and a range of 250km, its performance is equivalent to a conventional petrol vehicle. This makes it very likely to gain acceptance by the general public, and it may be ready for commercial production within ten years.
In January 1997 another hat was thrown into the zero emissions ring, in the shape of a Chrysler model, which uses as 'reformer' turning low-octane petrol into hydrogen for a fuel cell. Prompted by pressure from American clean-air legislation, Chrysler hope to have their vehicle on the market by 2006.
Ben Lane, Flat 4, 37 Cornwallis Crescent, Clifton, Bristol BS8 4PH (tel 0117 9732986; e-mail: BML5@tutor.open.ac.uk).
Further information may be obtained by visiting the websites for the Palm Desert Project ; Mercedes-Benz research news for the latest on the NECAR; and the site for the American Hydrogen Association
Ben Lane's recommended further reading on the subject. includes two books, Solar Hydrogen Energy by J. Bockris, T. Veziroglu, D. Smith (Optima), "a very good introduction to hydrogen philosophy for non-scientists"; and The Keys to the Car by J. Mackenzie (World Resources Institute), which presents a detailed comparison of hydrogen and electric vehicles.
Hydrogen buses for London by 2003?Summarised from an item in the London Metro (March 27th 2001).
By 2003, London will be part of a nine-city trial of zero-emission buses running on hydrogen. The three low-floor 70-seater buses will be supplied by EvoBus, a division of Daimler Chrysler, and cost £790,000 each, over three times as much as the present buses. They will have an operating range of around 240 kilometers (150 miles) and will be refuelled with hydrogen fuel from BP.
Transport for London says they hope more fuel cell buses will be brought in after the trial finishes in 2005, but that will depend upon the development of a wider hydrogen fuel infrastructure.
The other eight cities involved in the trial are: Amsterdam, Barcelona, Hamburg, Luxembourg, Porto, Reykjavik, Stockholm and Stuttgart.
Other organisations involved in hydrogen energy research include:
American Academy of Science, 26900 East Pink Hill Road, Independence, MO 64057, USA (tel 00 1 816 229 3800).
American Hydrogen Association, PO Box 15075, Phoenix, AZ 85060 or: 219 South Siesta Lane, Suite 101, Tempe, AZ 85281, USA (tel 00 1 602 921 0433; fax 00 1 602 967 6601).
Centre for Electrochemical Systems and Hydrogen Research, Texas A and M University, Mail Stop 3402, College Station, TX 77843-3577; (tel 00 1 409 845 0424).
Citizens for Clean Energy, Attn. Stephen J Clark, PO Box 17147, Boulder, CO 80308, USA (tel 00 1 303 443 6181)
Clean Energy Research Institute, University of Miami, PO Box 248294, Coral Gables, FL 33124, USA.
Electric Power Research Instititute, Generation and Storage Division, 3412 Hillview Avenue, Palo Alto, CA 94304, USA (tel 00 1 415 855 2000).
Hydrogen Consultants, Inc., 12420 North Dumont Way, Littleton, CO 80125, USA (tel 00 1 303 791 7972).
Hydrogen Industry Council, 1801 McGill College Avenue, Suite 920, Montreal, Quebec, Canada H3A 2N4 (tel 00 1 514 288 5139; fax 00 1 514 843 6079).
National Hydrogen Association, Suite 910, 1101 Connecticut Avenue, NW, Washington DC 20036, USA (tel 00 1 202 223 5547).
There is now an international
association devoted to promoting hydrogen as the new fuel for the world, called Hydrogen Now! They can be contacted on 00 1 866 464 2669, or see their website at www.hydrogennow.org .
For a related article in the Global Ideas Bank, see Clean, cheap fuel - 45%water .
Hydrogen may not be the answer for future fuelSummarised from an item in the NewScientist (November 15th 2003).
Hydrogen was once seen as the answer to the world's increasing environmental problems. Now there is a concern global warming and depletation of the earth's ozono layer could result from leaked hydrogen energy.
If hydrogen fuel does leak from cars or power plants it could react with hydroxyl (OH) radicals resulting in longer lasting clouds over the north and south poles. Scientists are then concluding that these clouds could inhibit the repair of the ozone layer leaving potent methane gas to linger in the stratosphere.
More recently a study by Larry Horowitz of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is finding disturbing results about the effects of hydrogen as a power source. Horowitz and his colleagues have concluded leaked hydrogen could actually increase the greenhouse gases in the atmoshpere.
The seriousness of Horowitz's study depends on the amount of hydrogen leaked into the atmosphere. Horowitz predicts that if all the world's automobiles are converted to hydrogen fuel, emission of leaked hydrogen could increase from 80 million tonnes a year to up to 120 million tonnes a year. Leakage rates will depend on the form of hydrogen, gas or liquid, being used.
The answer is to minimize leakage by producing hydrogen energy from renewable power sources such as wind and solar power. The ways to achieve this goal are to store and transport the hydrogen gas at a very low pressure which would minimze the amount of fuel a tank can carry or by using tanks that can burn off any hydrogen that is evaporated from the high pressure of the liquid hydrogen.
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