HyPower Fuel Incorporated has equipped a Volkswagen GTi with its newest hydrogen-on-demand system to power the vehicle using only distilled water as fuel. HyPower’s H2 Reactor (H2R) system uses electrolysis to efficiently create hydrogen and power the vehicle’s internal combustion engine (ICE).
According to HyPower, its H2R system is 2 – 2.5 times more efficient in producing hydrogen-on-demand than the nearest competing system as it requires just 1 watt hour to produce 1 liter of hydrogen gas. HyPower plants to develop the H2R system both for large-scale production of hydrogen and for hydrogen-on-demand applications in vehicles.
HyPower’s current product is the Hydro PowerPak (HPP), which is a retrofit device that creates a small amount of hydrogen via electrolysis as an additive to a vehicle’s current ICE. No engine modifications are needed to run the HPP only an insertion point into the air intake. The HPP device is currently used in the trucking industry to improve fuel economy by 8 – 20 percent and cut down on emissions.
HyPower’s major competitors with its H2R hydrogen-on-demand system is Hydrogen Power Inc. and Alchemy Enterprises. Hydrogen Power Incorporated has developed a hydrogen-on-demand system called Hydrogen Now, which they demonstrated in a converted 2006 Ford Ranger XL at the 2007 International Auto Show in Seattle. Alchemy Enterprises is developing the Hydratus system, which using a combination of magnesium and water to create hydrogen-on-demand and will be using the system to power a bus.
Hydro Kevin…Great Blog! We need more friends in the hydrogen fuel community. We invite you come and post with us on http://www.ecotalityblog.com and help us create a community, like yours, to educate people on renewable energies. Ecotality, our new company name, recently purchased the first Hydrogen bus in Arizona. We plan on outfitting the bus with a ‘moving class room’ educating people on Hydrogen fuel and the Hydratus technology.
When will these cars be available for test drives by the public?