An Alternative Fuel For Automobiles By: K. Dzwonkowski Hydrogen An Alternative Fuel For Automobiles By: K. Dzwonkowski From H To Fuel 2

The Need for Alternative Fuels -Current Supply of Fossil Fuels may be exhausted by the year 2030. -By the year 2025, petroleum production will decrease dramatically. -The political instability in the Middle East will cause the price of petroleum to continue to increase. -The United States is becoming dependent on foreign nations for their petroleum needs and is, therefore, causing a decline in their status as a world leader. -The United State’s Foreign Policy would not have to consider the “OPEC Factor” in making decisions concerning world affairs.

Why Hydrogen is the Best of all the Rest Hydrogen is a stable element. Hydrogen can be produced from biomass (plant matter). This is excellent because the United States has huge agricultural resources. Hydrogen is renewable. Hydrogen is the most abundant element on earth – making up 75 percent of our environment. A pound of hydrogen holds more energy than any other material. Hydrogen is clean burning – great for our atmosphere. Fuel cell cars have no exhaust emissions. In its gaseous state, hydrogen is non-toxic and burns invisibly. Hydrogen is odorless – no nauseating fumes to inhale.

Current Usages of Hydrogen as an Alternative Fuel for Automobiles Honda Motor Company – plans to have 50,000 fuel cell cars by 2010. Hydrogen to be used to run the fuel cells. The cars’ power and range of driving have increased over the past years. Fed-Ex and UPS plan to phase in hydrogen powered trucks over the next five years. General Motors has already designed and built model fuel cells and plan to have a production-ready hydrogen model available by 2010. Daimler-Chrysler has 100 fuel cell cars and buses in operation using hydrogen as their fuel. Thirty-six of the buses have 75,000 hours of operation and 1.1 million kilometers of travel. Both Chevron and Shell have opened hydrogen fueling stations in California and Washington D.C. Los Angeles will soon have 21 stations while San Francisco will have eight.

Current Usages of Hydrogen as an Alternative Fuel for Automobiles (Cont.) Ford Motor Company has developed an engine that is optimized to burn hydrogen. The engine can reach an overall efficiency of 38 percent. This is about 25 percent more fuel-efficient than a typical gasoline engine. The engine is comparable to Ford’s 2.3 liter engine used in the Ford Ranger. From 2000-2005, 65 light-duty trucks using fuel cells were placed into use in Los Angeles. The trucks have logged more than 220,000 miles.

Hydrogen Fuel Cell versus Gasoline Powered Internal Combustion Hydrogen Gasoline Fuel Cell Powered Water vapor .25 lb/mile .39 lb/mile Carbon dioxide .00 lb/mile .85 lb/mile Nitrogen oxides 0g/mile .3-.5g/mile Unburned hydrocarbons none present

Converting to a Hydrogen Based Fuel The U.S. Government needs to increase their financial support of the program. (The support needed can be compared to the “Race to the Moon” campaign. The government heavily supported this program in order to be the first to put a man on the moon. The same support needs to be given to make the United States the “first” to convert to a hydrogen based economy. The United States currently lags behind countries such as Europe and Japan in converting to alternative fuels.) With increased government support, current gasoline stations could be converted to hydrogen stations. People cannot buy and use cars fueled by hydrogen if there is no way to obtain the hydrogen fuel. This will require major restructuring of current stations, however, it would be a one time cost that will assuredly be recouped many times over. A five-cent tax per gallon on gasoline could defray part of the cost of converting to the use of hydrogen. The tax would be eliminated once the conversion has taken place.

Converting to a Hydrogen Based Fuel- Cont. Incentives for buying fuel cell cars and for investing in hydrogen technology needs increasing. The incentives could include tax rebates for the purchase, preferential parking and free registration for fuel cell cars. The problem of storing the hydrogen fuel in cars needs addressing. Currently, the area needed for a car to go 300 or more miles between fill-ups would require a tank about the size of a trunk. Distribution system for hydrogen will need developing. Current system of storing and transporting hydrogen is expensive. However, with increased government support and the increased usage of the fuel, the price will go down and the profits will go up for the businesses involved in distributing the product.

Concluding Facts The usage of hydrogen holds the promise of ending the U.S.’s dependence on foreign countries. Fuel cells generate electricity from a catalyst induced chemical reaction between hydrogen and oxygen ions in a cell. This process produces the by-products water and heat when pure hydrogen is used. The fact that hydrogen fuel will be environmentally friendly is an advantageous attribute. The current damage being imposed on the environment can be slowed down dramatically. It has been predicted that it is possible to change from a petroleum based economy to a hydrogen based economy by the year 2038. This is a realistic, however slightly optimistic, target date. Once hydrogen is used commercially, thousands of jobs will be created in the United States (not in foreign countries). Jobs created includes scientific research and development, manufacturing, construction, and sales. Hydrogen production will be good for our economy – it can be produced here and will not need importing.

GO HYDROGEN! The United States is fast approaching a time when the need for an alternative fuel will not be an option – it will be a requirement. The best answer in many ways is hydrogen. A lot of research and development needs conducting before this dream can become a reality but it is feasible and it is desirable. H2 H2 H2 H2 H2 H2

References California Energy Commission. (2006 June). Hydrogen as a transportation fuel. Retrieved March 18, 2008, from http://www.energy.ca.gov/2005publications/CEC-600-2005-027/CEC 600-2005-027-FS.PDF Kiefer, I. (1979). Energy for America. Crawfordsville, Indiana: R.R. Donnelley & Sons. Kushnir, P. (2000, May/June). Hydrogen as an alternative fuel. Army Logistician. Retrieved March 16, 2008, from http://www.almc.army.mil/alog/issues/MayJun00/MS492.htm Reynolds, W. D. (2006, May 24). The next step - conversion to the solar-hydrogen economy. Retrieved March 15, 2008, from http://www.beyondfossilfuel.com/hydrogen/reynolds.html

References (Cont.) Saunders, R., Nuccio, S., Seafeldt, A., & Meboe, K. (n.d.) Hydrogen-powered cars. Retrieved March 18, 2008, from http://www.meboe.com/kevin/hydrogen/hydrogen.html Schwartz, P.& Randall, D. (2003, April). How hydrogen can save America. Wired, Issue 11.04. Retrieved March 17, 2008, from http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/11.04/hydrogen.html United States Department of Energy: Alternative Fuel & Advanced Vehicles Data Center. (2008, Feb 26). Alternative & advanced fuels. Retrieved March 17, 2008, from http://www.eere.energy.gov/afdc/fuels/hydrogen.html