My Thoughts on Technology and Jamaica: 2014 Hyundai Tucson SUV to be launched as world's first mass Produced Hydrogen Vehicle - PEM Fuel Cells using Water is The Best Man Holiday for the Hydrogen Economy

Thursday, November 21, 2013

2014 Hyundai Tucson SUV to be launched as world's first mass Produced Hydrogen Vehicle - PEM Fuel Cells using Water is The Best Man Holiday for the Hydrogen Economy

“These things are now ready for prime time”

Hyundai's North American CEO John Krafcik commenting on the 2014 Hyundai Tucson

Hyundai has made a decision that’s sure to shake the very foundations of the Auto Industry in the US of A. They’ve decided to debut the 2014 Hyundai Tucson as their first mass produced Hydrogen Fuel Cell powered Automobile in America as stated in the article “Hyundai to market Hydrogen vehicle next year”, published Tuesday, November 19, 2013 1:40 PM, The Jamaica Observer.

Details on the 2014 Hyundai Tucson will be revealed on Wednesday November 20th 2013 at the Los Angeles Auto Show. When it goes on sale in the US of A, it will be in effect the first Mass produced Hydrogen powered vehicle in the World as originally reported by the Associated Press in the article “Hyundai to Sell Hydrogen-Powered SUV in 2014”, published November 19, 2013, By TOM KRISHER AP Auto Writer via ABC News. In other words, when you request a 2014 Hyundai Tucson, it’ll ONLY be in the Hydrogen version by default.

This is a big decision and indicates the South Korean’s confidence in Americans taking to this new technology, despite the lukewarm reception received by All-Electric Vehicles thus far, such as the Nissan Leaf as stated in my blog article entitled “Nissan Debuts the 2013 Nissan Leaf - 228 km range good for commute to The House at the End of the Street”.



Interestingly, Nissan was one of a consortium of companies that had been working together to develop Hydrogen Fuel Cell powered Range Extender Vehicles as explained in my blog article entitled “Ford ,Dailmer AG and Nissan Motors Develope All-Electric Vehicles powered by Hydrogen Fuel Cell Range Extender Technology - Fast and the Furious 6 Open Architecture Ender's Game for Hydrogen”.

2014 Hyundai Tucson – Hydrogen Powered Vehicles that Fulfill George W. Bush’s Mandate

I guess Hyundai beat them to it first as this is basically what the 2014 Hyundai Tucson; an All-Electric Vehicles that uses a generator powered by a Hydrogen Fuel Cell aka a Hydrogen Fuel Cell powered Range Extender as described in my blog article entitled “Alternative Energy and Volvo - Tomorrow Never Dies for the Hydrogen-Electron Economy” and “Lithium-Ion vs Hydrogen Fuel Cell - The Living Daylights”.

It also fulfills former President George W. Bush’s who in had started the Hydrogen X Project with a US$1.2 billion for Hydrogen research and stated at his State of the Union address, quote: “The first car driven by a child born today could be powered by Hydrogen and pollution free”. His words have come to pass indeed, as by 2014; many in America will live to see a mass-produced Hydrogen Vehicle Roaming the Streets.

California and New York pledged in October 2013 to put 3.3 million All-Electric Vehicles, Range Extender All-Electric Vehicles and Hybrid Electric Vehicles on their roads by 2025 and result in zero-emission from vehicles. Hyundai’s Tucson and a plethora of Hydrogen Powered vehicles that are as sure as rain to come, will make this goal very possible.

Curiously , GM (General Motors) 2011 Chevy Volt, which led the way in Range Extender Technology as described in my Geezam blog article entitled “The American Race towards Alternative Energy”, has no plans for a Mass produced Hydrogen powered Vehicles. But the Japanese and the Koreans do, with the following auto makers also having plans to launch similar Hydrogen Fuel Cell powered vehicles, also to be announced on Wednesday November 20th 2013.

Hyundai PEM – Hydrogen from Water to power SUV makes sense

Hyundai’s apparently solved the problem of making it affordable to the masses by first introducing PEM (Proton Exchange Membrane) inside of SUV (Sports Utility Vehicles). SUV’s are usually pricey, making it the typical vehicles for the well-to-do trendsetter to drive. In so doing, they’re initially targeting those with the cash to splash, with the hopes that it’ll generate enough interest to get Americans excited about Hydrogen Powered Vehicles.

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They’ve also apparently solved the storage problem for Hydrogen. This proprietary safe storage method is resistant to crashes and has been designed so as to not explode, ensuring the safety of the passengers. Most likely, I’m willing to bet they’ve stored the Hydrogen as Distilled Water with a proprietary ionizing salt.

Something that Researchers in Jamaica who are developing a replacement for LPG (Liquid Petroleum Gas) Cylinders are also working on as noted in my blog article entitled “UTECH partners with GOJ and UWI to develope Hydrogen Cooking Gas Cylinders - EU Funded 3 Year Project is Chasing Mavericks to push Jamaica into the Hydrogen-Electron Economy”.

Finally they’ve solved the Gas Station problems as well, as most of the Hydrogen Gas station simply store Distilled Water and convert it and keep in pressurized tanks on site. Thus Transportation and refilling of Hydrogen Gas Stations is nothing more than refilling the Underground Tanks with Distilled Water. Solar Panels at the Gas Station then split the Water into Hydrogen and oxygen and the Hydrogen is cooled in situ and kept until a customer arrives.

When they fill up, the process takes mere minutes, no different than refilling with Gasoline. The California Air Resources Board counts none (9) of these thus far, with one hundred (100) more coming thanks to a Congressional Grant of US$100 million over the next five (5) years to build some 100 more in California alone. It's that serious folks if the State Legislature is involved and the Federal Government may soon support this move with more funding.

Hydrogen Fuel is for the Future – Water is Renewable and as plentiful as the Sea is wide

It also makes sense to use SUV’s as the test vehicles. They drink gas and demand a lot of power for sudden accelerations that current All-Electric Vehicles designs can’t manage. A Hydrogen Range Extender, however, is like having a power supply for the Li-Ion Batteries in the Vehicles.

With enough Energy to lift rockets into space, powering a SUV is the ultimate demonstration of the power and strength of Hydrogen. Best of all, it’ll make All-Electric Vehicles achieve mass market, something they’ve struggled to due to Range anxieties related to running out of battery Charge. Best of all, recharging the Vehicles can now take two (2) forms:

1.   Recharging the Li-Ion Batteries directly at home or at a Recharging Station
2.   Refilling the Hydrogen Fuel Tanks at home or at a Hydrogen Refuelling Station

Whenever the SUV needs that extract burst of Energy, the Hydrogen can more than supply the Energy needed as Hydrogen readily converts to a gas without need for nozzles in the combustion chamber to atomize it via spraying as a liquid for more even combustion.

Here’s to The Best Man Holiday (2013) for Hydrogen Powered All-Electric Vehicles.

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