automotive design
Hydrogen Fuel Cells – The Basic Facts
One of the more exciting vehicles that’s scheduled to come to Australia at some unspecified date in 2019 is the Hyundai Nexo – one of the vehicles recently awarded the Best in Class for all-round safety by Euro NCAP. This vehicle combines regular batteries with hydrogen fuel cell technology. Three vehicles made by major marques have been designed to run on HFCs: the aforementioned Hyundai Nexo, the Toyota Mirai and the Honda Clarity.
Hydrogen fuel cell technology is another option for overcoming our addiction to fossil fuels (the other two are biofuels and electricity). But what is hydrogen fuel cell technology and how does it work? Is it really that sustainable and/or environmentally friendly? Isn’t hydrogen explosive, so will a car running on hydrogen fuel cell technology really be safe?
OK, let’s start with the basics: how does it work?
Diagram of a hydrogen fuel cell
A hydrogen fuel cell (let’s call it an HFC for short) is designed to generate electricity, so a vehicle that’s powered by HFC technology is technically an EV. A chemical reaction takes place in the cell and this gets a current going, thanks to the delicate balance between positive and negative ions (all chemistry is, ultimately, to do with electricity). How is this different from a battery? Well, a battery uses what’s stored inside it but an HFC needs a continual supply of fuel. Think of a battery as being like a lake, whereas the HFC is a stream or a river. The other thing that an HFC needs is something for the hydrogen fuel to react with as it passes through the cell itself, which consists of an anode, cathode and an electrolyte solution – and I don’t mean a fancy sports drink. One of the things that hydrogen reacts best with and is readily found in the atmosphere is good old oxygen.
Naturally, there’s always a waste product produced from the reaction that generates the charge. This waste product is dihydrogen monoxide. For those of you who haven’t heard of this, dihydrogen monoxide is a colourless, odourless compound that’s liquid at room temperature. In gas form, dihydrogen monoxide is a well-known and very common greenhouse gas, and it’s quite corrosive to a number of metals (it’s a major component of acid rain). It’s vital to the operation of nuclear-powered submarines and is widely used in industry as a solvent and coolant. Although it has been used as a form of torture, it’s highly addictive to humans and is responsible for hundreds of human deaths globally every year. Prolonged contact with dihydrogen monoxide in solid form causes severe tissue damage. You can find more information about this potentially dangerous substance here*: http://www.dhmo.org/facts.html
For the less alarmist of us, dihydrogen monoxide is, of course, H2O or good old water, like the stuff I’m sipping on right now on a hot summer day. Yes – that’s the main waste product produced by HFCs, which is why these are a bit of a hot topic in the world of environmental motoring.
OK, so air goes in one bit of the HFC, hydrogen gas goes in the other, and water and electrical power come out of it. The next question that one has to ask is where the hydrogen fuel comes from (this question always needs to be asked: what’s the source of the fossil fuel substitute?). The cheapest source of hydrogen gas as used on HFCs is natural gas, which is, unfortunately, a fossil fuel. So are some of the other sources of hydrogen gas. However, you can get it out of methane, which is the simplest type of hydrocarbon. Methane can be produced naturally by bacteria that live in the guts of certain animals, especially cows. Not sure how you can catch the methane from burping and farting cows for use in making hydrogen gas for HFCs. And, just in case you’re wondering, some humans (not all!) do produce methane when they fart. It’s down to the particular breed of bacteria in the gut (archaea if you want to be picky – they’re known as methanogens). They’re as common as muck – literally. So yes, there’s potential for hydrogen gas to be produced from natural sources – including from sewage. The other thing is that producing hydrogen gas from methane leaves carbon dioxide behind. But this has way less effect as a greenhouse gas than methane, so that’s a plus.
If you’re currently feeling that HFCs might not be quite as environmentally friendly after all and we all ought to drive straight EVs, then I encourage you to do a thorough investigation of how the electricity used to charge EVs comes from. It’s not always that carbon-neutral either. Heck, even a bicycle isn’t carbon-neutral because when you puff and pant more to push those pedals, you are breathing out more carbon dioxide than normal. All in all, HFCs are pretty darn good. The worst thing they chuck out as exhaust is water, and the hydrogen gas needed to power them can come from sustainable sources – very sustainable if you get it from animal manure and/or sewage, which also means that poop becomes a resource instead of a problem to get rid of. They’re doing this in Japan – and they’ve also managed to get the carbon bits of the methane to become calcium carbonate, which sequesters carbon and has all sorts of fun uses from a dietary supplement through to agricultural lime.
Another plus about HFCs is that they are a lot more efficient than combustion engines. A large chunk of the potential energy going in turns into the electrical energy that you want, which is then turned into kinetic (motion) energy by the motor so your car gets moving (or it turns into some other form, such as light energy for the headlights or sound energy for the stereo system). Some comes out in the form of heat. Combustion engines waste a lot of the potential energy in the form of heat (lots of it!) and noise (ditto).
The amount of electrical energy produced by a single HFC isn’t going to be very large, so inside any vehicle powered by hydrogen technology, there will be a stack of HFCs, which work together to produce the full amount of oomph you need. The fun part in designing a vehicle that runs on HFC technology involves ensuring that the stack has the oomph needed without being too heavy and working out where to put the tanks of hydrogen gas. However, this isn’t too hard.
The other problem with manufacturing HFC vehicles is that the catalyst inside the cells is expensive – platinum is common. This is probably one of the biggest barriers to the spread of the technology, along with the usual issue of nobody buying HFC vehicles because nobody’s got an easy place to get the gas from and nobody’s selling the gas because nobody’s buying HFC cars. They had the same issue with plug-in EVs too, remember, and we all know how that’s changed. However, last year, our very own CSIRO came up with some technology to get hydrogen fuel for HFC vehicles out of ammonia and they want to go crazy with this and use it all over the show. This is exciting stuff and probably deserves a post of its very own, so I’ll tell you more about that another day.
I feel in the need for some 1,3,7-trimethylxanthine theine combined with dihydrogen monoxide in solution with β-D-galactopyranosyl-(1→4)-D-glucose and calcium phosphate, also known as a cup of coffee, so it’s time for me to stop and to wish you safe and happy driving – hopefully without too much methane inside the cabin of your car on long journeys!
*Some people in the world have far, far too much time on their hands.
2019 Mitsubishi Triton Is Ready To Rumble.
Updated, stronger, and better, the Mitsubishi Triton update for 2019 is on the way. Mitsubishi have given the Triton a new face, with their proprietary “Dynamic Shield” front and centre. The all wheel drive system has been given an update, and the level of safety has been improved even further.
The design team have gone to some length to ensure that, as a 4WD capable off-roader, that design elements provide good looks and safety. This extends to the placement of the headlights and the judicious use of chrome to highlight the Shield design ethic. The rear end has been given a makeover also, with reprofiled tail lights and bumper adding extra visual appeal.
Underneath and outside are changes to the drivetrain and body styles. There is the four door cabin or double cab, the club cab with storage space behind the seats, and the single cab, with extra tray capacity. The all terrain system has been improved with the 2WD and 4WD Super-Select now getting Mud/Snow, Sand, Gravel, and Rock in the GLS and GLS Premium trim levels, with the latter receiving a rear diff lock. Naturally there are the high and low range gearing in the drivetrain. The 4WD versions have a ground clearance of 220mm, an approach angle of 31 degrees, and a departure angle of 23 degrees. Breakover angle is 25 degrees. The suspension has been kept at the double wishbone front and double leaf rear springs, with a change to the structure and the addition of bigger dampers for better ride control.
Safety now has Rear Cross Traffic Alert (RCTA), Blind Spot Warning (with Lane Change Assist), Front Collision Mitigation (FCM) autonomous braking with camera and laser radar systems to detect cars and pedestrians;and Ultrasonic misacceleration Mitigation System (UMS) which reads surrounding areas and blanks engine power if it reads a presence.
The interior has had the wand waved over it. Materials have been given a colour change to a more even toned scheme, with a alloy look plastic trim fitment and stitching on certain parts of the cabin bringing in a luxurious look. A repositioning of the console has extra storage space being made available, plus there is the addition of a USB charging point for rear seat passengers. Up front, the driver seeds a redesigned dash display with a higher definition than before screen.
To get the Triton underway, Mitsubishi use their well sorted 2.5L diesel. Peak power is 133kW at 3500rpm, with peak torque of 430Nm coming in at a very usable 2500rpm. The engine block itself is lighter and built using a diescast alloy formula. the existing five speed auto has been bumped for a six speed, with taller gear ratios for better fuel economy. The existing six speed manual remains. The entry level model stays with the 2.4L petrol engine and five speed manual combination.
The range kicks off with the 4×2 GLX cab chassis, with the 2.4L petrol engine and manual at a manufacturers list price of $22,490. The Club cab starts at $35,490 for the GLX manual and diesel, whilst the dual cab starts with the GLX pick-up from $36,290 and tops out at $51,990 for the 4×4 GLS Premium 2.4L Pick Up Auto Diesel.
The 2019 Triton range is due for release in the first quarter of the year.
The Electric Cat Wins EV Award
Infrastructure is expanding, understanding of the technology is increasing, and more brands are getting into the electric car field. Once renowned for sports cars and luxury cars, Jaguar is one of those companies. Their new i-Pace has recently been named Top Gear Magazine’s Electric Vehicle of the year, with the car racking up 19 awards in 2018.
It’s powered by a pair of bespoke electric engines that develop 400 horsepower and 696Nm of torque. 0-100 time is 4.5 seconds thanks to its all wheel drive and lightweight architecture. Getting the car underway with a drained battery takes just 40 minutes to an 80% charge level at a charging station, or, like virtually all buyers would do, a home charger will do that overnight. Expected range is 470 kilometres, enough to travel from Sydney to Canberra comfortably and take advantage of the charging stations there.
Available in Australia from $119,000 plus on roads, the i-Pace will also have the Touch Pro Duo infotainment system, capable of over-the-air software updates, and uses artificial intelligence to adapt to a driver’s personal preferences, ensuring driving and infotainment settings are matched to each individual using the car.
The legendary Ian Callum, Jaguar’s Director of Design, said: “We’re delighted to see the I-PACE named EV of the Year by BBC TopGear Magazine.
“As our first all-electric Jaguar we set out with a goal to make the I-PACE the world’s most desirable electric vehicle and recognition like this clearly shows that we are achieving it.”
Contact Jaguar for more details here.
Yellow Or Blue: The Question That Exposed Dangerous Drivers
This picture, put into circulation by the Royal Automobile Club of Queensland, asked what really should have been a simple question to answer. Of the four cars pictured, which has the right of way?
Surprisingly, an overwhelming amount of respondents to the question, shared by us also, said the blue car. Straight away this raises an issue that should have the politicians and heads of traffic police investigating better driver education and training.
Of the four cars, one is behind another and therefore is immediately out of the equation. The car it’s behind is at a Give Way sign, and must remain stationary until other cars have passed through. The blue car is crossing a clearly marked delineation on the road’s surface. Road regulations state that any crossing of such a marked line,including at roundabouts, merge lanes, and intersections such as this, require indication.
This leaves the yellow car, following the road as marked by the dotted centre line, as the first car to go through. The RACQ themselves published this: “The give way sign at this intersection makes the path the yellow vehicle is on the continuing road, which curves to the right. The red and orange vehicles are facing a give way sign and must give way to all other traffic. Therefore the yellow vehicle goes first, the blue vehicle goes second as it is effectively turning right off the continuing road and the red and orange vehicles follow.”
Responses to this ranged from: “ Yellow, Blue, Red, But why is Blue indicating right? There is no right turn” to “There should be a give way sign at the t-section and not where it’s currently placed.”
Questions were raised about the road design and markings: “The marks on the road mean nothing . It clearly states in the road rules all vehicles must give way to the vehicle on your right. As there is no give way sign, stop sign or arrows on road, apart from the red car with give way sign. So it is blue ,yellow and red.” It’s this kind of response that should also raise red flags with road designers.
Many queried why the blue car was indicating. The Queensland government’s official stance on this is:” When you change lanes, you must give way to any vehicle in the lane you are moving into. This rule applies even if your lane is ending and you have to cross a lane line. “
These are from the NSW Roads and Maritime Services website and clearly show the same regulations that should be adhered to. And in one succinct sentence: ” Generally if you’re turning across another vehicle’s path, you must give way.” At all times, any lane change, be it as shown here, or at merge lanes, or at roundabouts, indicators MUST be used.
Finally, it seems that governments really do need to rethink their road safety plan if something such as this, in a hypothetical sense, potentially translates to a real world situation. If so, it means many drivers in the blue cars would be held responsible for the crash.
Level 2, 9 Help Street