Filed under: Etc., Green, Tech
Pasta Cargioli? Pasta powered fuel cell
by Dan Roth on May 30th 2007 at 5:01PM 
High fuel prices and energy mandates bring all sorts of alternative fuel research and technology to the fore. University and government researchers recently whipped up a special blend of 13 enzymes and spices that releases hydrogen from a mixture of starch and water. There's no word on how it tastes, but it will definitely give you some pep, packing into six pounds the same wallop as a gallon of gasoline. The process produces hydrogen efficiently, so a vehicle using a hydrogen-powered fuel cell would only need to carry 12 gallons of water and 60 pounds of solid starch (96 lbs total), plus the enzyme blend, to achieve a 300-mile range. While this process appears to be an economical way to produce hydrogen in a manner quick enough for use in an automotive fuel cell, it does generate carbon dioxide. The reaction also requires a temperature of 86 degrees farenheit. Neither problem sounds as difficult as cold fusion, and the technique will be test driven in small fuel cells for mobile phones before testing in vehicles. Sugar water, pasta power, call it what you will, wouldn't it be nice to fizz up some power to get you on your way?[Source: Automotive DesignLine]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Jed 11:41PM (6/13/2007)
If it still releases CO2 whats the point? Unless there is a significant cost advantage over gasoline, or the hydrogen extraction can be centralized and CO2 sequestered.
Reply
tubular_smells 10:07AM (8/03/2007)
It's still CO2 neutral as it's not fossil carbon, but carbon taken out of the atmosphere in the first place by the plant grown to produce the starch. This means that from the beginning to the end of the cycle - i.e. from planting the seeds to actually driving the car - there is no net increase in atmospheric CO2 levels, even if CO2 still comes out of the tailpipe. The same basically applies with biodiesel and bioethanol.