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Previously, we’ve shown the spotlight on how electric cars work. Today we’ll be focusing on another alternative, which is the use of hydrogen fuel cells to power up the vehicles. Hydrogen cars are a new type of vehicle that runs on hydrogen fuel cells. The technology behind these cars is actually quite simple-hydrogen is stored in tanks, and when it comes into contact with oxygen, it creates electricity to power the car.

Hydrogen fuel cells have been around for a long time, but they have only recently become popular as an alternative to traditional gasoline-powered cars.

There are many benefits to using hydrogen cars instead of regular cars-they produce zero emissions, they are more efficient than gas cars, and they can be powered by renewable energy sources like solar or wind power.

To learn more about how hydrogen cars work, keep reading!

The Technology Behind Hydrogen Cars

A hydrogen car uses a fuel cell to run. The fuel cell is powered by the catalytic reaction between hydrogen and oxygen, which creates electricity and pure H 2 gas.

This gas goes into the metal container known as the fuel cell, where it combines with oxygen from the air to create more electricity. The only byproduct of this process is pure water!

How Do Hydrogen Fuel Cells Work?

Hydrogen fuel cells work similarly to batteries and other types of fuel cells. This is a chemical reaction between hydrogen and oxygen (or water) that creates electricity and heat.

Most cars that run on gasoline combust it with oxygen from the air, which produces carbon dioxide as a by-product. In a hydrogen car, the only byproduct is water vapor because the hydrogen reacts with oxygen in the air.

Hydrogen fuel cells work like this: hydrogen is pumped into a cell with a membrane between the anode and cathode. When the hydrogen enters the cell, it meets up with oxygen from the air to form water on one side of the membrane-this creates electricity and heat, which is why things in cars can get hot when they run.

Challenges Of Hydrogen Fuel Cars

Hydrogen fuel cells have been around for a long time, but they haven’t been used in cars until recently because the technology wasn’t efficient enough to create a car that would run on hydrogen alone.

The first major challenge to using hydrogen as an alternative form of fuel is producing it in a cost-effective way. Hydrogen must be separated from water, and this requires electricity. The electricity needed to do this comes from another energy source like solar power or wind power-but there aren’t many places that have easy access to these renewable sources of energy right now. So until more countries invest in alternative forms of energy, producing hydrogen will continue to be expensive and impractical.

The second challenge is storing hydrogen properly so it can be used by drivers. Right now, there are only a small number of locations where hydrogen fuel cells are available for use because storage is still an issue. If car manufacturers built vehicles with larger tanks to store hydrogen, then at least three times more hydrogen could fit into the cars.

But that’s just not practical right now since it would take up too much space and increase the weight of the vehicle. That would affect how long the car can drive before running out of gas.

Drivers Can Use Hydrogen Or Gasoline For Fuel

The main idea behind hydrogen fuel cells is that they are alternatives to gasoline-powered vehicles, but many drivers have found that both types of cars work well for them depending on what kind of trips they’re taking.

One downside to hydrogen cars is that they cost more than traditional gas-powered cars, but people like them because they are good for the environment and they provide savings when it comes time to refill the tank.

Choosing between a hydrogen car or a gas-powered car really depends on the driver’s lifestyle and what type of trips he or she takes. Some people choose to use both types of vehicles, like owning an electric vehicle for work and using a hydrogen car on weekends to save money at the pump! Whatever you want in your next car will determine if you should consider buying a hydrogen fuel cell vehicle.

Hydrogen Fuel Cars Allow For A Greener Future

People have been working on finding greener energy sources for decades. Many feel that traditional gasoline-powered cars contribute to pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. However, others believe electric vehicles are much more environmentally friendly. Using hydrogen fuel cells in your car can help you find a happy medium between these technologies.

Hydrogen is non-toxic when it combusts making it much less harmful than gasoline or electricity production when considering environmental impact. Also, many industries today are turning to renewable forms of energy like solar power because they don’t rely on fossil fuels to produce this power. It is important to be aware of your energy consumption in your daily life, especially in the transportation industry.

There are different alternatives available today for the conventional fossil-fuel vehicle. One of them is the fuel-cell cars. Instead of using conventional fossil fuel to power the vehicles, these use hydrogen and oxygen to power up the vehicles. The end product is electricity and water.

Hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles still have their limitations. There are also still some advantages and disadvantages when it comes to using the technology. However, they still are a more environmentally-friendly alternative to cars with combustion engines.

We’re not here to convince you to trade off your combustion engine car right away. We just want you to consider the many benefits of using such a vehicle. Knowing more about cars with a better impact on the environment is the ultimate future of the car industry.

Advantages Of Fuel-Cell Cars

Renewable And Available Energy Source

Fuel-cell cars use hydrogen for power. It is present in vast amounts, even if there are challenges of extracting it from water. Being a renewable source is one of the many great things about hydrogen. It is a great resource not only for power but for heat as well.

Clean Source Of Energy

One of the problems that we are trying to remedy when we are looking for alternatives to combustion engines is the carbon footprint. Hydrogen fuel cells are a solution to that.

Using them wouldn’t bring about adverse effects to the environment because they only produce water and heat. There are no greenhouse gas emissions and they won’t pollute the air when used. Using them will significantly decrease the carbon footprint.

Apart from that, the production of hydrogen doesn’t require the conversion of huge lands to areas of production. Additionally, the byproducts are non-toxic.

More Efficient Than Fossil Fuel

Compared to fossil fuels, hydrogen fuel cell technology is more efficient. It produces high-density power. Additionally, it can be used to produce more energy than other fuels. Usually, hydrogen fuel cells will consume less fuel as compared to your usual combustion engine vehicle.

Longevity Of Use

One thing you also have to note is the longevity of the car itself. Hydrogen fuel cell-powered engines can be used just as much as conventional combustion engine vehicles. That makes them superior to electric vehicles.

Electric vehicles may be greatly affected by cold weather, causing them to deteriorate. That isn’t the case for cars with hydrogen fuel cells. This makes them further outlast the alternatives.

Other Applications

Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are one of the many applications of this kind of technology. Apart from powering vehicles, they can also be used for other applications such as heating systems. They can also be a good source of power for other smaller products.

UK’s first hydrogen fuel station has opened at Birmingham University, despite a shortage of potential customers.

The station is the first of 12 outlets planned to open nationwide by 2010 and will serve a campus fleet of five fuel-cell cars. It’s the first part of the infrastructure needed to support the far-off prospect of hydrogen-powered cars in the UK.

The vehicles are part of the university’s own fleet, and will allow engineering researchers to learn more about their efficiency and cost-effectiveness.

Professor Kevin Kendall from the University explained the reasoning behind the station: “It is absolutely necessary that we have the means to refuel our fleet of hydrogen-powered cars so that we can carry out our research into the feasibility of hydrogen in a transport context.”

Air Products installed the fuel station and also recently announced that it is working with Transport for London (TfL) to build fuel stations for a fleet of 70 hydrogen-powered vehicles being introduced from next year.

Meanwhile, the hydrogen itself will be provided by Green Gases Ltd, which manufactures the gas using renewable biomass energy, an approach the university claims will ensure that both the manufacturing process and use of the fuel cells will result in no carbon emissions.

Further growth is expected, with perhaps 12 hydrogen filling stations around the UK by 2010, raising the possibility of commercial production of cars powered by fuel cells.