Teen inventor plans to unveil hybrid engine
Monday, May 12, 2008

"With rising gas prices becoming a big concern, Santana High School senior Josh Wesolowski plans to unveil an invention he hopes will hold an answer to the energy riddle. Debuting next week at the Inventors Showcase in San Diego, the contraption, constructed from an old lawn-mower engine, is a "hybrid" engine that runs on four different types of fuel: gasoline, propane, methanol and hydrogen."  More

posted by Steve @ 10:27 AM, ,


Improved Hydrogen Extraction Technique

Scientists have succeeded in the controlled extraction of hydrogen from formic acid-without the need for the high-temperature reforming process usually involved in other hydrogen generation systems.  More

posted by Steve @ 10:26 AM, ,


GM building a future beyond petroleum

"General Motors Corp.'s vice chairman for global product development Bob Lutz has called the Chevy Volt a game-changer, and the rest of the company shares his urgency to get the electric vehicle to market by late 2010. GM has more than 200 engineers and 50 designers working on the production model, with another 400 people working on subsystems and components. But the Volt isn't the only player on GM's bench." More

posted by Steve @ 10:25 AM, ,


Hydrogen-power vision hits road
Monday, May 05, 2008

"Fred Humes shows where the hydrogen enters the modified Chevrolet Silverado the Center for Hydrogen Research brought to the Tomorrow is Today Workforce & Education workshop in Myrtle Beach." More

posted by Steve @ 6:11 PM, ,


Government of Canada Invests Over $13.6 Million in Vancouver's World-Class Fuel Cell Industry

"The Government of Canada today announced a $13.6 million investment in the National Research Council (NRC)'s Vancouver-based fuel cell and hydrogen industry and officially opened the Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Gateway - a technology demonstration and exhibit centre showcasing Canada's world-leading fuel cell and hydrogen industry. Representing the Honourable Jim Prentice, Industry Minister and Minister responsible for NRC, the Honourable Gary Lunn, Minister of Natural Resources, reconfirmed the Government of Canada's support for the work NRC and its partners have been doing to catalyze science and technology-based partnerships in Vancouver's fuel cell and hydrogen technologies cluster."  More

posted by Steve @ 6:10 PM, ,


Learn About Alternative Fuel Vehicles
Friday, May 02, 2008

"Some are afraid of the hydrogen vehicle concept, so in this article we look at exactly what a hydrogen vehicle is and how it runs. One way a hydrogen car makes energy is by using a fuel cell to create electricity. A fuel cell is an electrochemical energy conversion device, a mechanism that changes hydrogen and oxygen into water; that water is then used to create electricity, which is used to power electric motors." More

posted by Steve @ 8:11 AM, ,


Dehydrated Hydrogen -- Just add water!

"... when raw aluminum touches water it hijacks the oxygen molecules simultaneously forming alumina (Al2O3) and releasing heat and hydrogen gas, as Jerry Woodall was startled to discover while working as a young IBM semiconductor engineer in the 1960s."  More

posted by Steve @ 8:06 AM, ,


Smaller hydrogen pumps mean more fuel-cell cars
Wednesday, April 30, 2008

"Tokyo Gas and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries have come up with a much smaller hydrogen pump that should make it simpler to fit out normal petrol stations. The new separation devices generate the hydrogen from normal city gas and water vapour using alloy membranes as filters instead of by the older method of purifying hydrogen. This lends itself to equipment that is small enough to go mainstream." More

posted by Steve @ 10:09 AM, ,


ReliOn raises $23M for hydrogen fuel cells

"ReliOn, a Spokane-based fuel cell maker that helps provide backup power for communications companies and air traffic control towers, has taken over $23 million in a round that will likely be the company's last, according to its CEO. ReliOn is among the few fuel cell makers actively making sales and growing its business, in part due to government regulations requiring longer-lasting backup power at telecommunications towers. ReliOn's cells, capable of delivering from 100 watts to 6 kilowatts, have proven useful for that purpose."  More

posted by Steve @ 10:07 AM, ,


South Carolina leads region in hydrogen economy
Monday, April 28, 2008

"Through the efforts of government, university and business leaders throughout the state, South Carolina is developing, demonstrating and deploying an energy infrastructure based on hydrogen gas and fuel cell power units. Just five years ago, a small group of visionaries gathered in regional meetings across South Carolina to ask what might be possible if a focused effort was placed on developing the market for fuel cells and hydrogen infrastructure in the Southeastern United States. Today, the Aiken County Economic Development Partnership is working with Bridgestone/Firestone South Carolina to deploy over 40 hydrogen and fuel cell powered lift trucks at its plant in Aiken County."  More

posted by Steve @ 7:59 AM, ,


Hydrogen power has an Edge

"As more consumers start demanding green products, Ford is looking to catch the environmental wave. The company gave the media a sneak peek into its sustainability initiatives with a demonstration of the Ford Edge with HySeries Drive on Thursday at the local Ford plant. The automaker claims it is the world's first drivable fuel cell hybrid electric vehicle. The Edge with HySeries Drive is a battery-powered, plug-in hybrid with a fuel cell that operates as an on-board charger. The vehicle runs in battery-only mode for the first 40 km at speeds up to 136 km/h. When the battery is depleted to approximately 40 per cent, the hydrogen-powered fuel cell auxiliary power unit starts and recharges the battery, giving it an additional 320 km of range."  More

posted by Steve @ 7:58 AM, ,


Hydrogen Cars for the Masses

"Ford began working on hydrogen technology in the early 1990s. The company's first hydrogen internal combustion engine demonstration vehicle, released in 2001, was based on a lightweight aluminum sedan body, which also was used in the development of the company's first drivable hydrogen fuel cell vehicle. The company currently has a fleet of 30 hydrogen-powered Focus fuel cell vehicles on the road as part of a worldwide, seven-city program to conduct real world testing of fuel cell technology. The fleet has accumulated more than 650,000 miles since its inception. With this fleet on the ground, information is being generated in different local environmental conditions that can be integrated into future fuel cell vehicle propulsion systems." More

posted by Steve @ 7:57 AM, ,


Silicon Nanotubes May Outpace Carbon Nanotubes for Hydrogen Fuel Cells

"Watch out carbon-based batteries, silicon still has some juice left after all. While carbon and its extensive uses in various forms like nanotubes, graphene and buckyballs has been receiving scads of research and media time, another element, hydrogen, has made a consistent showing for its use as an alternative fuel. The promise of clean cars and long-lasting batteries has piqued the interest of our electric society. The two together have been shown to hold some incredible promise for powering all sorts of devices." More

posted by Steve @ 7:56 AM, ,


Peugeot Hydrogen-Electric Hybrid Delivery Van
Thursday, April 24, 2008

"Peugeot-Citroen and Intelligent Energy have built a hybrid delivery van featuring an electric powertrain supplemented by an all-new hydrogen fuel cell system.  Created under a three-year technology development partnership called H2Origin, the van uses an Intelligent Energy 10 kWe hyrdrogen fuel cell system that increases the otherwise hybrid vehicle to a 300km, or 187 mile range -- a threefold improvement over the electric only variant. The hydrogen storage system allows for the zero emission fuel to be secured in an exchangeable rack, allowing for quick and easy refueling, and and the ability to weather extreme conditions."  More

posted by Steve @ 7:44 PM, ,


Air Products Commercializes Alberta Hydrogen Plant

"Industrial gases provider Air Products Canada, has commercialized its new 100 million cubic-feet-per day hydrogen plant to serve the Petro-Canada refinery near Edmonton, Alberta, and other customers in the Alberta Heartlands industrial corridor."  More

posted by Steve @ 7:42 PM, ,


Department of Defense Announces Hydrogen Funding Scheme

"An announcement requesting research proposals concerning the design and development of hydrogen storage systems, for use by the military, was made by the Naval Surface Warfare Center and the Defense Logistics Agency.  Proposals must be submitted by May 23rd and can consist of "basic research, applied research, or advanced technology development not related to the development of a specific system or hardware procurement". According to the Broad Agency Announcement, development awards are expected to range between $500,000 (£252,000) and $1.5 million." More

posted by Steve @ 7:40 PM, ,


The Power of Pond Scum: Biodiesel and Hydrogen From Algae

" As anyone who has had to clean a swimming pool or fish tank knows, algae grow quickly. All they need is light, carbon dioxide, and a little water to grow like, well, weeds. It turns out that algae produce oil that can be processed to make biodiesel. In some species, this oil represents more than half of the plantlike organism's mass. Researchers are also trying to genetically alter algae to make them give off copious amounts of hydrogen to meet the needs of future fuel-cell-powered cars." More

posted by Steve @ 7:38 PM, ,


California offers funding for improved hydrogen felling stations

"California's Air Resources Board (ARB) is offering US$7.7m to construct and improve hydrogen-fuelling stations in the Los Angeles and San Francisco areas. The deadline for funding application is 13 June 2008." More (subscription)

posted by Steve @ 7:36 PM, ,


'Car Talk' Guys Looks at Hydrogen Cars
Monday, April 21, 2008

"As the boys joke about various prototypes, they learn that changing an economy based on petroleum won't be easy.  There they are at rush hour in Reykjavik, Iceland, where gas is $8 a gallon, riding a hydrogen-powered bus. There they are, in hunter hats, learning about geothermal power as steam shoots up their pant legs."  More

posted by Steve @ 8:05 AM, ,


Business Journal: Alternative Fuels

"Fuel cell cars powered by hydrogen produce no tailpipe emissions. Research continues to improve this technology, and UT-Chattanooga is among research locations. California has most of the private-access hydrogen fuel stations now in operation." More

posted by Steve @ 8:03 AM, ,