Mercedes Mullins
The idea of a car that runs on water as fuel has been around for decades, with inventor Stanley Allen Meyer claiming to have created a water fuel cell in the 1990s. However, his claims were later found to be fraudulent, and water-fuelled cars have since been associated with hoaxes and fraudulent intent. Despite this, the concept continues to capture the imagination, with several individuals and companies making similar claims over the years. While water cannot be used directly to power vehicles, it can be decomposed into hydrogen and oxygen, with hydrogen being a viable fuel source for cars. This has led to the development of hydrogen fuel cells, which use chemical energy to generate electricity that powers motors. While hydrogen fuel cell cars are gaining traction, they face challenges, such as the high cost of hydrogen production, and have not yet achieved full commercialization.
Can a car run with water as fuel?
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Can a car run exclusively on water? | No, water cannot be directly used to propel vehicles. |
| Hydrogen-powered cars | Water can be decomposed into hydrogen and oxygen, where hydrogen can power fuel cells. |
| Hydrogen fuel cells | Hydrogen fuel cells use chemical energy to generate electricity that powers motors. |
| Hydrogen production | Hydrogen can be generated in-situ, within the fuel cell, or be supplied externally. |
| Hydrogen as fuel | Hydrogen is expensive to produce and is highly combustible. |
| Hydrogen fuel cell cars | Hydrogen fuel cell cars are gaining traction but are not yet commercially available. |
| Hydrogen refuelling | Refuelling times for hydrogen-powered cars are as low as fossil fuel equivalents. |
| Hydrogen fuel economy | Hydrogen-powered cars have a superior fuel economy to fossil fuel cars. |
| Hydrogen emissions | Hydrogen-powered cars emit only water vapour from the tailpipe. |
| Hydrogen fuel enhancement | Water can be used to increase fuel efficiency, but not as the sole source of fuel. |
| Water fuel cell | The water fuel cell is a non-functional design for a "perpetual motion machine" created by Stanley Allen Meyer. |
| Water as a fuel source | Water itself cannot contribute any energy to the process of powering a vehicle. |
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What You'll Learn
Hydrogen fuel cells
While water cannot be used directly to power vehicles, it can be decomposed into hydrogen and oxygen, where hydrogen can be used to power fuel cells. Hydrogen fuel cells use chemical energy to generate electricity that powers motors. This electricity is produced when hydrogen gas (H2) combines with oxygen from the air, resulting in a chemical reaction.
The fuel cell consists of a membrane coated with a catalyst. Hydrogen atoms enter the fuel cell at the anode, while oxygen is fed to the cathode. When the hydrogen molecules hit the catalyst, they are split into positively charged hydrogen ions and negatively charged electrons. The membrane allows the hydrogen ions to pass through, while the electrons flow through an electric circuit, generating an electric current. At the cathode side, the hydrogen ions, electrons, and oxygen combine to produce water vapour as the only end product.
Fuel cells also won't run down or need recharging as long as the fuel source (hydrogen) is supplied, making them ideal for long-haul transportation and powering heavier construction equipment. Additionally, hydrogen-powered machines produce low noise levels similar to electric vehicles and have superior fuel economy. The biggest advantage of using fuel cells is the immediate elimination of harmful tailpipe emissions, resulting in zero greenhouse gas emissions.
Several companies have claimed to have developed technology that allows water to be used as fuel for automobiles. However, these claims have largely been discredited or proven fraudulent.
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Water as a source of hydrogen
Water cannot be used directly to power vehicles. However, water is a source of hydrogen, and hydrogen can be used to power cars. Hydrogen is a clean fuel that, when consumed in a fuel cell, produces only water vapour as the end product. This makes it an attractive fuel option for transportation applications, as it can help reduce a vehicle's carbon footprint.
Hydrogen fuel cells use chemical energy to generate electricity that powers motors. Vehicles that run on this technology are known as Fuel Cell Electric Vehicles (FCEVs). While there are many types of fuel cells, polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells are the most commonly used. Fuel cells typically consist of a cathode and an anode. Hydrogen from the fuel tank is supplied at the anode, where it reacts with a catalyst to split into its constituent subatomic particles, i.e. a proton and an electron. The cathode is supplied with air, and the protons and electrons of hydrogen react with its oxygen to produce water vapour.
There are several methods to produce hydrogen from water, including:
- High-pressure electrolysis
- Low-pressure electrolysis of water
- High-temperature electrolysis
- Carbon-assisted electrolysis
- Solar-driven processes: Photobiological, photoelectrochemical, and solar thermochemical
- Biological processes: Microbial biomass conversion and photobiological processes
The most common methods for producing hydrogen today are natural gas reforming (a thermal process) and electrolysis. Natural gas reforming, also known as steam methane reforming (SMR), is the largest and cheapest source of hydrogen suitable for use in fuel cells. This process involves reacting natural gas with superheated steam, resulting in the production of hydrogen, along with carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide. When carbon capture and storage are used to remove carbon emissions, the product is known as blue hydrogen.
While it is theoretically possible to create a self-contained system where water from fuel cells is electrolyzed to produce hydrogen, it is impossible to create a self-sustaining system without incurring some loss of energy due to the second law of thermodynamics.
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Water fuel cell hoaxes
Water-fuelled cars have been the subject of numerous international patents, newspaper and popular science magazine articles, local television news coverage, and websites. However, the claims made about these vehicles have largely been found to be pseudoscience, tied to investment frauds, or simply hoaxes.
One of the earliest known instances of a water-fuelled car hoax was in 1935 when Charles H. Garrett allegedly demonstrated such a car "for several minutes". The car was reported in The Dallas Morning News and Garrett's patent from that year showed a carburetor with electrolysis plates, indicating that the car generated hydrogen by electrolysis.
Another famous example is that of Stanley Meyer, who claimed as early as 1980 to have built a dune buggy that ran on water. Meyer gave inconsistent explanations of his invention, sometimes claiming to have replaced the spark plugs with a "water splitter" and other times saying it relied on a "fuel cell". He also claimed that his device required less energy to perform electrolysis than conventional science predicted. However, Meyer's claims were never independently verified, and in 1996, he was found guilty of "gross and egregious fraud" by an Ohio court. Despite this, conspiracy theories persist, claiming that Meyer was poisoned, leading to his death in 1998.
In 2002, Genesis World Energy announced a market-ready device that would extract energy from water, and in 2003, they claimed to have adapted the technology to power automobiles. The company collected over $2.5 million from investors, but none of their devices were ever brought to market. In 2006, the owner of Genesis World Energy, Patrick Kelly, was sentenced to five years in prison for theft and ordered to pay $400,000 in restitution.
Other examples of water-fuelled car hoaxes include the 2008 claim by Pakistani man Agha Waqar Ahmad, who said he had invented a "water kit" that could be installed in any automobile, and Indonesian inventor Aryanto Misel, who in 2022 claimed his invention, Nikuba, could convert water into hydrogen to fuel motorcycles. These hoaxes often prey on people's desire for cheap and environmentally friendly energy solutions, and they can have significant economic and political impacts.
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Hydrogen-powered vehicles
Water cannot be used directly to power vehicles. However, water is composed of hydrogen and oxygen, and hydrogen can be used as fuel for vehicles. Hydrogen fuel cells use chemical energy to generate electricity that powers motors. Vehicles that run on this technology are known as Fuel Cell Electric Vehicles (FCEVs).
While hydrogen fuel cells are used in commercial transport, such as buses and trucks, and even in some private cars, they are not as popular as electric or fossil fuel vehicles. This is due to the difficulties and costs associated with producing hydrogen.
The most common type of fuel cell for vehicle applications is the polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) fuel cell. In a PEM fuel cell, an electrolyte membrane is sandwiched between a positive electrode (cathode) and a negative electrode (anode). Hydrogen is introduced to the anode, and oxygen (from the air) is introduced to the cathode. The hydrogen molecules break apart into protons and electrons due to an electrochemical reaction aided by a catalyst. The protons then travel through the membrane to the cathode, and the electrons are forced to travel through an external circuit to provide power to the electric motor. Finally, the electrons recombine with the protons on the cathode side, where, along with oxygen molecules, they form water.
The Toyota Mirai is the best-selling hydrogen car in the US and has been rated at 90 kW (120 horsepower). However, this is not enough to accelerate onto a fast-moving highway, so Toyota adds in a high-voltage low-capacity battery.
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Water additive claims
Water-fuelled cars have been the subject of numerous international patents, news articles, and local television news coverage. However, the claims made by these sources have been deemed pseudoscience or fraud. Water additive claims, in particular, have been associated with fraudulent intent, as it is scientifically impossible for water to be converted into fuel without an additional energy source.
In 2008, Japanese company Genepax unveiled a car it claimed ran solely on water and air. The company's website offered vague explanations, stating only "Chemical reaction" as the energy source. Popular Mechanics magazine described Genepax's claims as "rubbish". The car Genepax demonstrated was a REVAi electric car manufactured in India, leading to further speculation that the car was not truly powered by water.
In 2022, Indonesian inventor Aryanto Misel claimed his invention, Nikuba, could convert water into hydrogen fuel for motorcycles. He asserted that 1 litre of water could power a motorcycle for 500 kilometres. However, Indonesian scientists refuted these claims, stating that the device was theoretically impossible.
While it is important to note that water cannot be used as a direct fuel source, it plays a crucial role in hydrogen fuel cells. Water can be decomposed into hydrogen and oxygen, with hydrogen powering fuel cells. This technology is already used in some commercial and private transport, although it is less common than electric or fossil fuel alternatives due to the challenges and costs associated with hydrogen production.
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Frequently asked questions
Water cannot be used as fuel to propel vehicles directly. However, water can be decomposed into hydrogen and oxygen, where hydrogen can power fuel cells.
Hydrogen fuel cells use chemical energy to generate electricity that powers motors. The hydrogen from the fuel tank is supplied at the anode, where it reacts with a catalyst to split into its constituent subatomic particles, i.e., a proton and an electron. The cathode is supplied with air, and the protons and electrons of hydrogen react with its oxygen to produce water vapour as the only end product.
The biggest advantage of using hydrogen fuel cells is the immediate elimination of harmful tailpipe emissions. Hydrogen fuel cells also have superior fuel economy and lower refueling times.
Hydrogen fuel cell cars are gaining traction, but commercialization of hydrogen fuel has not yet been accomplished. Cars powered by fuel cells are in prototype stages now, nearing production. The state of California operates a “Hydrogen Highway” program that supports the development of hydrogen fuel cell technology and infrastructure.
