Driving the car of the future (BBC) {hydrogen-fueled}

[eppur_se_muova]

Driving the car of the future
By Jonathan Head
BBC News, Yakushima island, Japan

Underneath the bonnet - and under the passenger seats as well - is a revolutionary fuel-cell engine that produces no pollution and, in effect, runs on nothing more than the enormous amounts of rain that fall on Yakushima.
***
Fuel cells don't run literally on water, but on hydrogen, which is forced through membranes inside the fuel-cell stack, producing an electric current that powers the car. You can make hydrogen from water, but that also requires electricity - and it so happens Yakushima has abundant quantities of that, too.
***
{Hiroshi Ishii, the president of the electricity company} pulls out a colourful leaflet showing how the hydrogen could fuel all the cars, buses and boats on the island. It could even, he thinks, be shipped to a neighbouring island where Japan's space programme is based, to power its rockets.
***
The technology is still too expensive for mass-production, but Honda has loaned other prototypes to city governments and individuals in the United States, in the hope that one day, they may be the first to produce a truly affordable fuel-cell car.
***
more at http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/4686826.stm

Editorial comment: this is kind of a 'light' article, with no technical details. But it's interesting to see signs of progress in any quarter.

[dcfirefighter]

1. The car of the future is a tram

At best, most of us use our car for an hour or two every day. For the remainder of the day, our car sit's idle, 'wasting' the scarce resources used to manufacture it, and more importantly, the scarce resource of space to park it - space that takes up to 50% of the land area of cities. (Half the land area of Washington, DC, for example, is devoted to the automobile). This is where sprawl starts, and it takes energy to overcome the distances associated with sprawl. Additionally, all of the non-permeable paved surfaces wash all of the lubricants and tire particles and lawn chemicals straight into the streams and rivers, bypassing the soil biota that can break down or otherwise sequester these chemicals.

Though a non polluting car would be nice for those who absolutely couldn't ride a tram, or for those weekend jaunts in the country.

[Mythsaje]

2. Or those who don't live in an urban or direct suburban area. n/t

[dcfirefighter]

6. We shouldn't subsidize people's commutes

But rather build liveable cities where the bulk of jobs are and people live. It's only due to a confluence of relatively artificial factors that many jobs, including manufacturing, have moved to the suburbs and rural areas.

Farms & the like would still be 'out there', and there would be 'tiny' cities (old-school small towns), but we shouldn't subsidize folks who want 'their' space AND a job in the city. It's 'OUR' planet.

[eppur_se_muova]

5. We'd like to think so, but cars get all the attention.

I do wish there were more publicity given to similar promising advances in mass transit. I remember there were experimental buses running on Stirling engines back in the 70's -- these are basically thermal engines, so can burn any fuel. But with US administrations basically abandoning mass transit for the last few decases, there's been very little potential payoff for investments in mass transit R&D.

[RC]

3. It takes massive amounts of energy to separate the hydrogen from

the Oxygen in water. Hydro, wind or nuclear are the only viable options at the moment.

[eppur_se_muova]

4. Hydrogen is just a way to STORE energy.

The energy can come from hydro (as in the article), hydro, geothermal, whatever. (or from dirty old oil, coal, etc.)

LOTS of technical problems to overcome, however. This is an update on a work in progress, not a complete solution.

[umass1993]

7. And it always will be the car of the future! eom

[rfkrfk]

8. it must be a slow news day

for the BBC to repeat this tripe,
for the 4 millionth time