Hydrogen power

ITM Power are publicising their development of a domestic hydrogen production system and a converted Ford Focus that could run for up to 30 miles on the hydrogen produced. That sort of distance is a typical daily commute and for longer distances the car can be revert to using unleaded. ITM Power offer this approach as a real world alternative to fuel cell vehicles that generate the electricity themselves. Depending on who you talk to, fuel cell vehicles work but are too expensive. It's the platinum in the fuel cells and the amounts required.

There's a big push to reduce the amount of platinum in fuel cells but for the time ITM Power's approach appeals to me. You would still have to have a big pressurised storage tank fitted to your car and that would restrict storage space but how much luggage do you need on the daily commute? ITM Power are also working on Bi-Fuel Diesels, too, so your common rail bus could run on hydrogen or biofuel diesel.

You would have a kind of green petrol pump outside your house. This is fed by wind turbines and electricity from your solar panels. In fact any sort of renewable electricity can feed into it, from heat pumps to Sterling engine powered domestic CHPs (Combined Heat and Power units). You could even use hamster wheels - every little helps. Instead of selling the excess electricity produced at peak times back to the grid, you would store it as hydrogen and use it for heating the house or transport.

There’s no mention about cost, however, but I’ve signed up to be sent more details. Like most people I’ve bought into the existing infrastructure and there are conversion costs to be considered but I really like the principles involved. It’s punk rock off-the-grid power. Apart from the fuel cells (which don’t have any moving parts), all the technology sounds fixable and easily maintained by an enthusiastic DIYer. The internal combustion engine that I understand can become a zero emissions vehicle and the amount of unsustainable WEEE looks low, too.

And for those longer journeys you can run the car on ethanol and not fossil fuels – one day.

I don't see how hydrogen could be used on a motorbike, though, unless you towed a trailer carrying the hydrogen tank. And motorcycles towing trailers is even worse than cars towing caravans in my view.