Just a thought: Hydrogen cars...

tolosenc

There's a lot of talk over here about hydrogen powered cars. These cars run on H and don't release any harmful greenhouse gasses, but rather water vapour.

However, one issue I see with this is:
CLIMATE CHANGE

I mean, water vapour is the stuff that makes clouds and rain. So by seriously upping our releases of H2O into the atmosphere, will we not still be changing the climate, just in a different, but equally crappy way?

So, my question to you is this:
Will hydrogen cars actually make our weather any more tolerable?

javaboy

Are you complaining before there's even a problem? The older generation had their fun with CFCs and big stinky engines. If we're not going to be allowed the same privilege at least let us pump water into the air.

If and when they finally get hydrogen engines going, I'd like to enjoy my H2O emissions for as long as I can.

ScumLord

Seeing as it's purely water vapor coming out the back and I'm assuming it'll be hot due to engine friction and pressure, would you be able to steam food while driving? It would be dead handy to stick the dinner on the exhust and have it cooked by the time you get home.

Wouldn't the atmosphere have some sort of saturation point for water vapor?

seamus

You're missing the primary piece of the puzzle here, really.

The hydrogen is produced in the first place by splitting water into Oxygen and Hydrogen.

So when you drive your hydrogen car, all you're doing is reconstituting that water. And since the volume of water on the planet is a constant, everyone wins.

The only thing we need to do is to make sure we don't siphon off much of the oxygen from the initial step and use it for other purposes. Otherwise, there's a cumulative effect of reducing the volume of atmospheric oxygen. It wouldn't be a problem for a long time, but failing to plan for long-term effects is a particular talent of ours.

I would imagine that rather then releasing the produced water as water vapour, it'll be collected in a tank at the back of the vehicle, which can/will be emptied periodically.

pickarooney

seamus wrote: »

So when you drive your hydrogen car, all you're doing is reconstituting that water. And since the volume of water on the planet is a constant, everyone wins.

Is that why when it's lovely and sunny everywhere else, it'll be milling it down in Ireland? Cheers lads, we owe youse one!

portomar

the hydrogen car developed by honda (they seem to be leading the charge on this one), uses a hydrogen cell which actually produces electricity in some reaction rather than by being combusted like petrol. not sure if this mattersto op question. the problem with hydrogen is the amount of energy needed to split the water in the first place, so if you're using a coal or dolphin fired power plant to do that, no carbon reduction. once we get the cold fusion sorted, the hydrogen will be boxed off!

seamus

Pfft. A single nuclear fission plant which did nothing all day except turn billions of gallons of water into hydrogen fuel, would be the way forward. Of course, it would have to be located in Offaly to minimise the risk of interruption by natural disaster or terrorists and the rest of the world would have to pay us a certain amount of compensation, as well as the cost of the hydrogen.

Ker-ching!

javaboy

seamus wrote: »

Pfft. A single nuclear fission plant which did nothing all day except turn billions of gallons of water into hydrogen fuel, would be the way forward. Of course, it would have to be located in Offaly to minimise the risk of interruption by natural disaster or terrorists and the rest of the world would have to pay us a certain amount of compensation, as well as the cost of the hydrogen.

Ker-ching!

Compensation for what? You said Offaly right?

seamus

javaboy wrote: »

Compensation for what? You said Offaly right?

I know, there's no human life there at risk, but why not cash in? Make up something about wildlife or a fictional ring fort being 400 miles away from the site.