Hydrogen production could come from cooking oil
Team at Leeds University is perfecting a method to extract hydrogen from cooking oil and other possible sources, such as scrap tires and waste oil.In simple terms, the fuel is reacted with steam to release hydrogen from both. The process was invented 10 years ago but not made public until 1999. Now there's a rush to see if the method can be commercially viable. Such a step would speed up the "hydrogen economy."
Since storing and transporting hydrogen is a major concern, the beauty of this process is that the fuel can be shipped to filling stations where it's reformed into hydrogen on site. Early demonstration models use methane or pulverised coal as a fuel. But researchers say the process can apply to biomass fuels. Experiments show up to 44 percent of available hydrogen has been extracted from sunflower cooking oil.
[Source: The Engineer Online]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Rick 12:43PM (9/05/2006)
Why is there such a determined, stubborn persistent obsession with such an inane idiotic idea such as the proliferation of a hydrogen economy?? We all realize it is simply a left-wing, feel good, political move.
We all need to relax, and submit to the will of our M.E. overlords, praise allah!
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Howard Lee Harkness 12:26PM (9/05/2006)
I have yet to see any scenario using hydrogen as a fuel that would not be rendered safer and more economical by leaving out the hydrogen part.
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Tony Belding 1:39PM (9/05/2006)
"Experiments show up to 44 percent of available hydrogen has been extracted from sunflower cooking oil." Why not simply burn 100% of it as-is? Sunflower oil is high-quality fuel! The lunacy of the "hydrogen economy" is becoming more and more obvious with every pronouncement of this sort.
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Mike 3:23PM (9/05/2006)
"I have yet to see any scenario using hydrogen as a fuel that would not be rendered safer and more economical by leaving out the hydrogen part."
That's so poorly worded that it borders on tautology. But maybe you're on to something. My gasoline engine IS safer and would certainly be cheaper if I leave out the gas part!
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snakesausage 8:12PM (9/05/2006)
I have always thought the hydrogen storage problem is the hydrogen. If hydrogen were contained in some intermediate easily reformable liquid then you could just pump it into your tank (using current distribution infrastructure) and reform it in your vehicle while you are using it (not at the distribution point). The fact is that using fuel cells and electric motors are more efficient than IC engines.
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gnomic 10:31PM (9/05/2006)
so how much of the 44% of H2 needs to be burned to create the steam? Is converting veggie oil the best way to get H2? Wouldn't it be cheaper to get NASA to abandon all its scientific research and go to Mars to drill for oil?
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Howard Lee Harkness 9:44AM (9/06/2006)
Mike: Leaving out the "gas part" might make your engine safer, but not more economical. In every published scenario using hydrogen to power automobiles, it would be easier, safer, AND more economical to take the energy needed to produce the hydrogen, and use it directly in the the automobile. Leaving out the hydrogen part completely. In the example of the article, as another poster has already observed, just burning the veggie oil would yield several times as much energy at a much lower cost.
gnomic: 1) It is highly unlikely that there in any oil on Mars. 2) Currently, most commercial H2 production is via conversion of methane.
snakesauge: Storage is only one of many problems with hydrogen. Current storage technology has a ridiculously low energy/volume ratio (there is more hydrogen in a gallon of diesel than in a gallon of liquid hydrogen). Hydrogen embrittles metals, so a hydrogen engine is going to have to be extensively rebuilt fairly often (or constructed of yet-to-be-invented materials) to avoid catastrophic failure. Hydrogen also has an extremely wide explosive mixture range, making it an extremely hazardous fuel. The inefficiencies in production of hydrogen overwhelm whatever efficiencies a fuel cell might achieve. Safe and economical use of hydrogen to power cars requires the repeal of several laws of physics and chemistry.
Use of hydrogen to power automobiles is insanely stupid.
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