Britain Unveils New Lightweight Emissions-Free Hydrogen Powered Car

by Teh Nutroots | At last, the 21st Century!--at least in Britain.  Check out the photo of this bad boy.  The Daily Mail reports:

The two-seater Riversimple Urban Car is able to travel 240 miles without refuelling and weighs just 772lb or 55st. It could be put into production as soon as 2013. A spokesman said they expected it to achieve 300miles to the gallon (Daily Mail).

Of course, the 21st Century might move a bit slower than you were probably imagining back when you used to watch The Jetsons.  The present version can reach speeds of "up to 50 mph."  (Daily Mail)  On the other hand:  the cars are expected to have a 20 year lifespan.(Daily Mail)  But....erm: hydrogen?  How does that work? Won't...explosions be a problem? 

I guess not:

The car has four electric motors attached to each wheel and these double as brakes and generate electricity which is stored in a bank of ultracapacitors. It is powered by a fuel cell of just six kilowatts compared with the 100kW in some hydrogen prototypes....

The highly explosive hydrogen is not burned.  Instead, the gas flows over a membrane in a special 'fuel cell' where  the chemical reaction produce electricity, which in turn powers the electric motors on the wheels. The only emissions out of the exhausr are pure water - from the hydrogen gas reacting with oxygen to produce H20 - and a little heat. (Daily Mail)

That's probably very reassuring if you're an engineer.  I'm curious about what would happen to the hydrogen in a collision with a gasoline-powerd vehicle. 

The distribution plans for these cars is interesting.

The 'green' emissions-free two-seater Riversimple Urban Car can't be bought, but can be leased like a company car for £200 a month - about the same as a Volkswagen Polo or Ford Fiesta -  but the price includes fuel. (Daily Mail).

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