Thu Sep 23,11:50 AM ET Add Technology - Reuters to My Yahoo!
PARIS (Reuters) - German luxury carmaker BMW unveiled the world's fastest hydrogen-powered car at the Paris auto show on Wednesday, dubbed the H2R, capable of exceeding 300 kilometers (185 miles) per hour.
"Our drive toward the future is called hydrogen," BMW management board member Burkhard Goeschel said before the tarp slowly slipped off the teardrop-shaped body of the sleek race car.
Goeschel, responsible for technology and development at BMW, said the streamlined rocket car sprints from 0 to 100 kmh in about six seconds and reached a top speed of 302.4 kmh on BMW's test track at Miramas, France.
"It's called the H2R -- 'R' as in record," Goeschel said, visibly proud of the company's breakthrough achievement in the field of zero emissions.
Unlike most hydrogen-powered vehicles, the H2R doesn't operate on a fuel cell but rather uses a modified 6-litre, 12-cylinder combustion engine for its propulsion that essentially emits nothing but steam.
An advantage of the higher combustion pressure of the hydrogen-air mixture is its higher degree of efficiency, BMW added.
The company cautioned, however, that while the cars don't pollute, production of hydrogen as a fuel does entail pollution.
Hydrogen is obtained either from fossil fuels such as natural gas or by applying electrical power to water molecules. Ecologically, the problem of finding a regenerating source of primary energy remains.
While BMW is developing fuel-cell driven cars as well, it says it is concentrating on the combustion engine because the sum total of its features and characteristics offers the largest number of advantages and benefits all in one.
"We had just 10 months to develop the H2R prototype," said project manager Juergen Kuebler in a statement.
Although the outer skin is made of carbon-fibre-reinforced plastic like a Formula 1 car, Goeschel said he wasn't considering registering it for next year's racing circuit.
Akaran of Mistmoore, formerly Akaran of Veeshan I know I'm good at what I do, but I know I'm not the best.
But I guess that on the other hand, I could be like the rest.
Despite the paragraph about refining hydrogen creating pollution, we're making progress. If we can make a hydrogen car, we're halfway there. Now all we have to do is make the hydrogen itself a non-pollutable energy source, both in making it and utilizing it, and then we'll be on our way to non-polluting transportation.
I have always been interested in the concept of alternative fuel vehicles. It's almost a shame that the federal tax rebate on hybrid vehicles shrinks to nothing in three years, just about the time my car will turn 9 and have about 160k, which is when I'd change up. Still, I'm going to try and test drive a few more hybrid vehicles in the meantime. The choices are becoming more diverse in the near future and it's pretty exciting quite frankly so long as the batteries hold up for their intended 8 years.
They already use hydrogen now in many nyc vehicles such as the SUNY bus system
Kaldaur wrote:Now all we have to do is make the hydrogen itself a non-pollutable energy source, both in making it and utilizing it
Well.. the utilizing it is pretty well covered... the by product of burning hydrogen is water
The real problem is getting the damn stuff for *anything* like the cost of getting oil... ie, oil has an energy return of 100:1, that is you get 100 units of energy from the oil if you expend one unit of energy pumping, transporting and refining it.
Hydrogen has an energy return of (something < 1):1
There's a big shortfall there to be made up somehow...
May 2003 - "Mission Accomplished"
June 2005 - "The mission isn't easy, and it will not be accomplished overnight"
-- G W Bush, freelance writer for The Daily Show.
5. Handling hydrogen can be dangerous. Remember the Hindenberg.
though...
Yes the Hindenberg contained hydrogen, which is flammable.. it was also coated in rocket fuel, which is worse :>
May 2003 - "Mission Accomplished"
June 2005 - "The mission isn't easy, and it will not be accomplished overnight"
-- G W Bush, freelance writer for The Daily Show.
I do take exception to