SI
SI
discoversearch

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor.  We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community.  If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.
Non-Tech : IMPCO Technologies (IMCO), formerly AirSensors (ARSN)
 Public ReplyPrvt ReplyMark as Last ReadFilePrevious 10Next 10PreviousNext  
To: Jim Oravetz who wrote (202)7/22/2000 10:30:11 AM
From: Jim Oravetz  Read Replies (1) of 298
 
"My guess is that hydrogen will not reach the same level of acceptance in the
transportation industry as oil until 2050," says Karl Jessen, director of energy
and Internet strategies at the Yankee Group consulting firm. "Unless of
course we have a major ecological or energy crisis in the next few years."

It's difficult to store hydrogen in small spaces and there is no infrastructure
to deliver it to a mass market. This has compelled the automakers to look at
alternative fuels from which they can extract hydrogen. The contenders are
propane, methanol, and gasoline. These are stored in a vehicle in much the
same way as gasoline and a specialized apparatus called a reformer is used to
strip out the hydrogen. The drawback with propane is that while it would
significantly reduce pollution it won't eliminate it completely. One carbon atom
will have to be released to free every four hydrogen atoms. The same goes
for methanol. And reforming hydrogen from gasoline does almost nothing to
help the environment, as one carbon atom is released to produce every one
and one-half hydrogen atoms. Furthermore, adding a reformer raises the cost
and substantially increases the weight of the vehicle, which goes a long way
to making fuel-cell cars less competitive than their gasoline counterparts.

"Unfortunately, we won't see pure hydrogen-based fuel-cell vehicles for some
time," says Jason Mark, senior transportation analyst with the Union of
Concerned Scientists. "The automakers will first introduce natural gas- and
methanol-based vehicles. Gas stations are just not equipped to deliver
hydrogen and we estimate that it will cost about $200 billion to upgrade
them."

redherring.com
Report TOU ViolationShare This Post
 Public ReplyPrvt ReplyMark as Last ReadFilePrevious 10Next 10PreviousNext  

HomeMailHotSubjectMarksPeopleMarksKeepersSettings
Terms Of UseContact UsCopyright/IP PolicyPrivacy PolicyAbout UsFAQAdvertise on SI
© 2025 Knight Sac Media.  Data provided by Twelve Data, Alpha Vantage, and CityFALCON News