Hydrogen fuel is potentially an alternative to gasoline, creating a hydrogen economy. Car manufacturers such as General Motors and others are researching potential usefulness of hydrogen to power cars. Because hydrogen in its gaseous state takes up a very large volume when compared to other fuels, hydrogen would be more useful as an energy source in its liquid state. One possible solution is to liberate the hydrogen from its associated carbon in a hydrogen reformer and feed the hydrogen into a fuel cell. Alternatively, some fuel cells (DEFC Direct-ethanol fuel cell) can be directly fed by ethanol or methanol. A hydrogen economy is a hypothetical future economy in which energy, for mobile applications (vehicles, aircraft) and electrical grid load balancing (daily peak demand reserve), is stored as hydrogen (H2). ... General Motors Corporation, also known as GM, is the worlds largest car manufacturer. ... The volume of a solid object is the three-dimensional concept of how much space it occupies, often quantified numerically. ... A liquid will usually assume the shape of its container. ... A hydrogen reformer is a device that extracts the hydrogen contained in other fuels. ... A fuel cell is an electrochemical device similar to a battery, but differing from the latter in that it is designed for continuous replenishment of the reactants consumed; i. ... Definition DEFC uses Ethanol in the fuel cell instead of the toxic methanol. ...

In early 2004, researchers at the University of Minnesota announced the invention of a simple ethanol reactor that would feed ethanol through a stack of catalysts, and output hydrogen. The device uses a rhodium-cerium catalyst for the initial reaction, which occurs at a temperature of about 700 °C (1300 °F). This initial reaction mixes ethanol, water vapor, and oxygen and produces good quantities of hydrogen. Unfortunately, it also results in the formation of carbon monoxide, a substance that "chokes" most fuel cells and must be passed through another catalyst to be converted into carbon dioxide. (The odorless, colorless, and tasteless carbon monoxide is also a significant toxic hazard if it escapes through the fuel cell into the exhaust, or if the conduits between the catalytic sections leak.) The ultimate products of the simple device are roughly 50% hydrogen gas and 30% nitrogen, with the remaining 20% mostly composed of carbon dioxide. Both the nitrogen and carbon dioxide are fairly inert when the mixture is pumped into an appropriate fuel cell. its true Washington Avenue Bridge at night The University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, almost always abbreviated U of M, and sometimes referred to as The U by locals, is the oldest and largest part of the University of Minnesota system. ... Reactor may relate to the folowing: A chemical reactor: a device for containing and controlling a chemical reaction. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Catalysis. ... Rh redirects here. ... General Name, Symbol, Number cerium, Ce, 58 Chemical series lanthanides Group, Period, Block n/a, 6, f Appearance silvery white Atomic mass 140. ... A conduit is a general term for a means of conveying something from one location to another or between persons. ... In English, to be inert is to be in a state of doing little or nothing. ...

See also

energy Portal

• Alcohol fuel
• Energy density
• Ethanol fuel
• Fuel cell
• Hydrogen vehicle
• Hydrogen economy
• Hydrogen