Hydrogen engines in the future?

[Paluss]

Toyota confirmed it a few months ago, now others are joining: https://www.rideapart.com/news/667789/honda-kawasaki-suzuki-yamaha-hydrogen/

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[Bryce]

I've always thought this was a better idea than electric.

 

[Recoil]

Kinda doubt it. We still haven't figured out how the infrastructure part would work. Isn't it also still really energy intensive to produce?

 

[Tncdrew]

Isn't it also still really energy intensive to produce?

Yes

 

[Cutterone]

Hence why we should be building tons of Gen4 (or5?) reactors...We've had the solution to clean energy for 70 years, and the new reactors are small, modular, super efficient, and with modern tech as fail proof as you can make anything...but wind and solar...sure right...

 

[Zandcwhite]

A coworker commutes in a murai, plenty of hydrogen fueling stations in the bay area. The problem is the car has camry like performance and range at twice the price and the fuel is more expensive. At least with electric you get the instant torque advantage. You can charge an EV at home, and if using solar its free. I just don't see the upside. If gas had run out and EVs weren't an option sure, but it's last on my list.

 

[Cutterone]

A coworker commutes in a murai, plenty of hydrogen fueling stations in the bay area. The problem is the car has camry like performance and range at twice the price and the fuel is more expensive. At least with electric you get the instant torque advantage. You can charge an EV at home, and if using solar its free. I just don't see the upside. If gas had run out and EVs weren't an option sure, but it's last on my list.

I have to assume there are more beneficial places to utilize our finite lithium and cobalt reserves than in giant heavy car batteries...

 

[Zandcwhite]

I have to assume there are more beneficial places to utilize our finite lithium and cobalt reserves than in giant heavy car batteries...

You could make the same argument about fossil fuels, but they've worked great for the last 125ish years. If they can figure out the solid state battery tech that solves the rare earth metal issue, a huge chunk of the weight issue, and you still get ridiculous performance (amplified further by the weight savings). Hydrogen feels like trying to take old technology and keep it going to me. It's just another ice vehicle.

 

[HK1s]

You could make the same argument about fossil fuels, but they've worked great for the last 125ish years. If they can figure out the solid state battery tech that solves the rare earth metal issue, a huge chunk of the weight issue, and you still get ridiculous performance (amplified further by the weight savings). Hydrogen feels like trying to take old technology and keep it going to me. It's just another ice vehicle.

hydrogen cars are EV, it uses the hydrogen to make water and in the meantime get electrons flowing.

 

[Zandcwhite]

hydrogen cars are EV, it uses the hydrogen to make water and in the meantime get electrons flowing.

It's a hybrid, also contains a large NiMh battery (so much for rate earth metal savings and light weight), and makes a whoping 152hp. It's a prius with hydrogen instead of gas. Hard pass.

 

[The Last Cowboy]

We should continue the use and development of gas and diesel engines as well. The world still needs to refine crude for is variety of chemicals and the ability to make synthetic/composite/plastic products. A big part of that refining process yields gasoline and various fuel oils, to include diesel. No way around that.

Transportation is an efficient and valuable use for those resources. What will be done with the glut of those fuels otherwise? There's no way to refine oil or gas without producing them. Refined oil yields a spectrum of chemicals, you can't just target what's needed.

I'm all for alternative fuels to reduce the amount of gas and diesel that needs to be burned. But leave it to the consumer to decide which fuels best suit their needs, or wants for that matter. There's no reason for it to be all one way or all the other. That makes no sense at all.

 

[Plan d]

Hydrogen cars will be racing at Le Mans within a couple of years

 

[Dusty Dude]

We should continue the use and development of gas and diesel engines as well. The world still needs to refine crude for is variety of chemicals and the ability to make synthetic/composite/plastic products. A big part of that refining process yields gasoline and various fuel oils, to include diesel. No way around that.

Transportation is an efficient and valuable use for those resources. What will be done with the glut of those fuels otherwise? There's no way to refine oil or gas without producing them. Refined oil yields a spectrum of chemicals, you can't just target what's needed.

I'm all for alternative fuels to reduce the amount of gas and diesel that needs to be burned. But leave it to the consumer to decide which fuels best suit their needs, or wants for that matter. There's no reason for it to be all one way or all the other. That makes no sense at all.

If you don’t mind, I would like to expand on this a little. Notice how every hybrid still uses gasoline? Natural gas, alcohol, vegetable oil, diesel, etc. could all be used, but they don’t. Why? Taxes!

Natural Gas would be a wonderful clean burning energy for vehicles. Less thermal energy than gas, but octane is around 130, so engine compression could be raised dramatically to increase efficiency(think diesel level compression ratios). The infrastructure is in place already, and the technology has been around since the days of the carburetor. Fill up time is roughly the same as gasoline.

Natural gas has not been promoted as a fuel source because it is hard to differentiate between on road vs off road use for taxes. Gasoline has no other use so it is always taxed. Home heating oil (non taxed diesel) has a red dye added to it. You can’t add a dye to natural gas.

 

[The Last Cowboy]

Great point. And, natural gas can also be liquified into a very high grade oil, then refined. Here in the US, we are the OPEC of NG, we produce huge amounts and have massive reserved within our borders.

 

[smokeythecat]

Gasoline has no other use

Except for lighting your grill when you're out of charcoal fluid. But hey, no, don't do this! I know. Fortunately no one was hurt.

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