Water for Gas Current Event

Water for Gas Current Event

  • Submitted By: luxembourg31
  • Date Submitted: 03/01/2009 1:29 PM
  • Category: Science
  • Words: 519
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AP Chemistry
10/31/2008

Water for Gas? Not Unless You've Got a Hydrogen Car
Site: http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=water-for-gas-not-unless-youve-got-2008-08-19&print=true
Author: David Biello
Journal: Scientific American
Date Published: August 19th 2008
This article discusses the various kits that are used to convert water to hydrogen gas that is usable as an additive in standard internal combustion engines. Water is a plentifully available resource, which contains hydrogen that can be obtained without the emission of harmful greenhouse gases. In fact this hydrogen release is the key principle behind hydrogen fuel cells. Internal combustion engines work through the burning of hydrocarbons and separating them into carbon dioxide gas.
2C8H18+25O2 ' 16CO2+18H2O + 10.86 MJ
By injecting extra hydrogen into the fuel, the reaction can become more efficient and the fuel will burn slower, allowing for a longer release of the energy. Theoretically, the mileage of the vehicle can be greatly increased through the usage of these kits. However, one key issue is that most engines are optimized for fuels of a certain quality, the reason why high-octane fuel only has a significant effect on high end cars. The injection of hydrogen would not necessarily help when these engines cannot effectively respond to the additive, though manufacturers such as BMW are investing in vehicles that can switch between hydrogen and gasoline. Also, the electrolyzer kit to separate the hydrogen in the water is rising in price, reducing the cost-effectiveness of this method.
AP Chemistry
10/31/2008
Mrs. French
Water for Gas? Not Unless You've Got a Hydrogen Car
Site: http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=water-for-gas-not-unless-youve-got-2008-08-19&print=true
Author: David Biello
Journal: Scientific American
Date Published: August 19th 2008
This article discusses the various kits that are used to convert water to hydrogen gas that is usable as an additive in standard...

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