| The future of the H2 Project: new methods, same objectives. |
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My big ambition to begin with was to raise awareness of the possibility
of using a clean, alternative fuel in an ordinary engine. It was also
above all an opportunity to learn more about this new technology and to
prepare for my return to the everyday after this extraordinary
adventure. I think my technical knowledge has improved a little over the last 21,000km - as well as my vision of the best solution to our energy problems. Let me tell you a little more about it. To begin with I want to emphasise that making do with what we have available today just isn't good enough. The damage we are doing to our planet is such that we must radically change not only our technology but also our attitudes. I notice some reticence, however, when I tell people about modifying the Beetle and equipping it with an electric motor: the car's aficionados love its noise, its fumes, its oil leaks, its smell and its vibrations. The relationship we have with our engine is primal, life-affirming. I understand these negative reactions: driving an electric car isn't as much fun. You could say it is neutral, insipid. But isn't it just the success of the car maker's marketing to have us believe a car is somehow different from a fridge or a coffee machine - that those who buy a car simply to get from A to B without worrying about its other aspects are somehow unnatural? For my part I would gladly transcend this relationship with the motor car in favour of a wooden sailing ship made by my own hand. To each his own...and for me the most important thing is to have a positive impact on the environment. So much has been written on the relationship between man (and woman) and his or her car that there is no need for me to revisit it here. I am, however, struck by how many brand new 4x4s there are in each country we visit - the same vehicles you can see in the most extreme conditions of our planet, from the deserts to the polar ice. But do we really need 400hp V8 power just to drive on a beach in Mexico or Costa Rica? When it comes to technical solutions, we have all been deceived. The internal combustion engine is a perfect machine...perfect for wasting energy! Its efficiency is a mere 20%, the rest being lost as heat, friction and noise). Attempting to resuscitate the internal combustion engine with labels like 'common rail', 'TDi', 'direct injection' is pure marketing, and nothing else. Converting the internal combustion engine to run on hydrogen is proof of its adaptibility but gives no improvement whatever to its efficiency - which today must be one of the main benchmarks of any technological decision. I must sadly abandon, therefore, my initial intention to convert the Beetle's original engine to run on hydrogen, which would have been an interesting exercise from a technical point of view, but one of no relevance to our immediate situation. But it's not over yet. I promised this would be a non-polluting car, and it will. So I'm getting rid of the petrol engine, but what should I replace it with? With a good old electric motor, of course. Electric motors are around 60% efficient - much better than the internal combustion engine. The electric motor will be battery powered to begin with, and perhaps by a hydrogen fuel cell if my budget allows it. The Honda FCX Clarity did it - why can't we? Electricity isn't the ideal solution, but we must consider any alternative for the future - fuel cells, batteries, natural gas, LPG, compressed air, biodiesel...and, of course, petrol. Our adventure may take our last electron, but we will get there. |
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