BMW Reaches Hydrogen Breakthrough

The BMW Group Forschung und Technik, in cooperation with researchers in Graz and Vienna, Austria, has succeeded in developing a dedicated hydrogen combustion engine with diesel-like geometry and progressive H2 high-pressure direct injection technology. The result is an efficiency level of up to 42 percent, on par with that of the best turbodiesel engines. Partners in the “H2BVplus” project, which is sponsored by Austria’s Federal Ministry for Transportation, Innovation and Technology (BMVIT), are the Institute for Internal Combustion Engines and Thermodynamics at Graz University of Technology, HyCentA Research GmbH in Graz, as well as HOERBIGER ValveTec GmbH in Vienna.

“In light of the limited availability of fossil fuels and the rising environmental impact from harmful emissions, we are convinced that the H2 combustion engine will assume an important position in the product portfolio of future alternative drive concepts. It will crucially contribute to safeguarding our individual mobility at the high level the customer expects,” said Professor Dr. Raymond Freymann, Managing Director of BMW Forschung und Technik GmbH. B The newly developed combustion system combines the strengths of spark-ignition and diesel concepts, while utilizing the favorable combustion properties of hydrogen, and thereby achieves efficiency values that easily bear comparison with even those of state-of-the-art turbodiesel engines. In the process, the engineers based their work on the joint EU “HylCE” project, during which maximum specific powers of up to 100 kilowatt per liter of displacement were demonstrated for a spark-ignition hydrogen combustion process.
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FanboysStink - 3/13/2009 11:42:45 PM

+2 Boost

Couple of thoughts, questions and doubts.

Key aspect of any hydrogen taming attempts is to get rid of combustion. It's efficiency is low due to limitation of Carnot cycle laws valid for any heat engine. Fuel cells are not affected and that's why we want them.

BMW, undertaking the effort to develop a by design much less efficient hydrogen COMBUSTION process, is implicitly admitting fuel cells are nowhere near production.


They want to burn hydrogen with 42% efficiency. Where are they going to get large quantities of it from? There are two industrially viable ways.

1. Performing electrolysis of water (efficiency 70%) using electricity. Burning the received hydrogen in an engine would result in overall efficiency of
70% * 42% = 0,7 * 0,42 ~= 0,3 = 30%

The cycle of battery charging -> discharging -> powering the electric motor in the Tesla Roadster has efficiency of 80%. In any plug-in hybrid it'd be the same. Electricity can be then much better spent this way so opting for hydrogen makes no sense.

2. Reforming natural gas (see below). This requires heat so efficiency is already lowered. Then comes 42% efficiency of burning it in the engine described above.

So the first question that comes to ones' mind is - why bothering with converting natural gas to hydrogen in the first place? Building a natural gas powered (CNG) hybrid vehicles would result with observed efficiency at similar or higher than 42% level and would not need the conversion efficiency penalty. Seems like a much better and simpler solution.

http://www1.eere.energy.gov/hydrogenandfuelcells/production/natural_gas.html

FanboysStink - 3/14/2009 11:06:39 AM

0 Boost

kthor:
"It is really simple. Hydrogen can be made from electricity that is generated from any source: solar, wind, nuclear, etc. The hydrogen can then be created right on site at the fueling areas instead of being trucked and piped to those locations."

Did you read my post?

If you go this way, you get efficiency of 30%. If you don't, efficiency rises to 80%.

Which car having same performance would you rather have? The one returning 30 mpg or the one returning 80 mpg?


"The Hydrogen 7's which are street legal, and fully licensed and have been operating for several years now and they can switch between hydrogen and petrol."

And they leak.

What few journalists wrote, if you leave the car for, I don't remember, week or two, its tank will empty itself. Just so. It won't then move on hydrogen even an inch forward.

sstainba2 - 3/16/2009 11:52:55 AM

+2 Boost

you are correct that electrolysis is not as efficient as direct use of electricity in electric motors. however, that's the only only concern. for many, many, many people in the us, electric cars are useless. they lack sufficient range for many people to make it to and from work. some people commute upwards of 60 miles one way each day. the problem with all electric vehicles is that batteries have poor power density. hydrogen may not be as efficient as electricity, but it is more convenient for many and would require less change to the current infrastructure.

DocMarten - 3/14/2009 12:08:47 AM

-7 Boost

That would be the smart thing for BMW to do, other-wise they are going to go bankrupt. The Japanese are good at technology.

German carmaker BMW AG said Thursday its net profit fell 90 percent in 2008 as the global economic crisis cut into demand for its sports and luxury cars.

In an unexpected preliminary earnings release, the Munich-based company said its net profit for the full year dropped to 330 million euros ($416 million) in 2008 from 3.1 billion euros in 2007.

Total revenues fell 5 percent to 53 billion euros from 56 billion euros in 2007.

ThierryHenry14 - 3/14/2009 9:16:26 AM

0 Boost

The thing with "alternative fuel" is that right now, there are so many competition that it is hard to pick one that will survive the rest. There are electric, hydrogen, and all types of hybrids in between and the current infrastructure in many countries are not equip to meet the demands to install all different types of fueling stations. The infrastructure and the government will wait until to see which one will prevail and then make a decision on what to dump there money into.

All this, of course, depends upon what the big petrol company will try to dictate.

Steve - 3/19/2009 7:56:43 PM

+1 Boost

The world is still waiting for the "abundant supply of enconomically feasible hydrogen in the form that is ready for auto fuel" break-through. Barring that, if BMW made a car that was fueled by hype, it would be more practical.