Originally published April 11 2005
There is a rush to create hydrogen-powered cars for consumers
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
The rising price of oil has made hydrogen power a much more interesting possibility, thanks to the fact that it can be produced domestically. Thus, the U.S. is eager to produce a car that can run on plentiful hydrogen rather than limited stocks of foreign oil. Research is centered mostly around fuel cells, but there are some companies, such as BMW, that are looking into hydrogen as a fuel for internal combustion engines.
WASHINGTON -- A sleek, silver BMW H2R racecar sat prominently displayed at the National Hydrogen Association Conference in Washington this week as a testament to the capabilities of Hydrogen-powered vehicles.
"We can get clean energy and still maintain all of the performance that Americans are hungry for," said Patrick Serfass, technical and program development manager for the National Hydrogen Association.
While hydrogen has been used for years by NASA to power rockets in the space program, it was only in the last decade that auto companies began to realistically look into the possibility of using the plentiful gas for mass transportation.
"The progress that DOE and the automotive and energy industries have made so far has us on the path to an industry commercialization decision in 2015.
Representatives from Ford Motor Company, Daimler-Chrysler, General Motors and ChevronTexaco joined Bodman in signing the recognition.
However, those corporations represent only a small portion of the major players involved in developing hydrogen-powered vehicles, and a representative from Toyota said that the corporation was upset that it was excluded from the event.
Knight pointed out that Toyota and Honda were at the forefront of Hydrogen technology since both companies were the first to introduce vehicles using fuel cells.
According to Serfass, the rush to develop affordable hydrogen vehicles rose out of a need for energy independence, environmental sustainability and economic prosperity.
Unlike BMW, which has focused most of its hydrogen research on the internal combustion engine, Ballard has developed vehicles powered by fuel cells, which use hydrogen and oxygen to generate electricity.
According to Michael Rosenberg, treasurer of Ballard Power Systems, vehicles powered by fuel cells are quieter and cleaner, with minimal vibrations compared to traditional gasoline cars.
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