By Reid Wright
Current-Argus Staff Writer
Posted: 10/03/2009 01:06:41 AM MDT
CARLSBAD — While the major automotive companies lag on production of hydrogen fuel-cell hybrid vehicles, some locals have joined a grassroots movement to develop hydrogen systems for their own vehicles, which they build out of parts from the hardware store.
Charles Goodwin was the winner of a fuel efficiency competition held Saturday in Carlsbad. He said the purpose of a hydrogen hybrid system is not to replace gasoline, but to make it burn more efficiently in the engine.
"The purpose of hydrogen is to form a more complete combustion of gasoline than the one that is there," he said. "It does this by a faster burn speed, which allows burning to take place before the exhaust valve opens."
Most standard engines burn about 20 percent of the gasoline pumped into the cylinder, Goodwin said. With the addition of hydrogen to the mixture, about 80 percent of the fuel is burned. Hydrogen hybrids have cleaner emissions and using hydrogen cleans out engines, making them more efficient, he said.
Goodwin's winning assembly uses household glass jars filled with sodium hydroxide. Stainless steel plates are submerged in the fluid and electrical current from the car's battery is run through the plates, causing a mixture of oxygen and hydrogen — called "Brown gas" — to bubble up. Through pressure created by the expansion of the gas, it is pushed through a bubbler and into the air intake of his Ford camper van.
Five vehicles competed in the race for the best improved gas mileage improvement over the EPA rating for each vehicle. Competitors drove the posted speed limit throughout a 30-mile course and their gas mileage was calculated upon return.
The lowest improvement in fuel efficiency over the EPA rating at the event was 24 percent and the best improvement was Goodwin's van at 93 percent.
"More than a race, it's about sharing information," Goodwin said.
Seminars were held after the competition in the Walter Gerrells Performing Arts Centre, in which tinkerers exchanged tips and tricks for fine-tuning their systems. Some were producing and selling their devices commercially.
Steven Gooch, who placed second in the event, said he did not patent his design because he didn't want to deal with government bureaucracy.
Gooch said he once drove from Carlsbad to Lovington on a single gallon of gas.
He said the internet sites such as Youtube are a good resource for those interested in building their own hydrogen systems. He stressed safety, warning that hydrogen gas is flammable and can even be explosive.
Further, Gooch said sodium hydroxide is corrosive and first time users should use a solution of baking soda and distilled water instead.
He said he drives his hydrogen hybrid car daily and only has to add about an inch of fluid to his jars every few months.
If done properly, Gooch said, the system does not put added strain on a vehicle's electrical system. He said that if a system is drawing more than 30 amps of power, it is probably doing more harm than good.
Goodwin said his system was built out of less than $100 in parts, and took him about 10 hours to build. However, he said it took him a couple years to develop and perfect the design.
Goodwin's reason for using hydrogen is simple.
"Just to get better gas mileage. I get better performance," he said.
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