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Running Your Car On Water
Can You
Really Run Your Car on Water?
by Anne
Marie Helmenstine, Ph.D.
Since posting instructions
for making biodiesel, many readers have noted that many cars (including
mine) run on gas, not diesel, and asking about options for gas-powered
vehicles.
In particular, I've gotten a
lot of questions about whether it is true that you can run your car on water.
My answer is yes... and no.
How to Run Your Car on Water
If
your car burns gasoline, it won't burn water per se.
However, water (H2O)
can be electrolyzed to form HHO or Brown's gas.
The HHO is added to the
engine's intake, where it mixes with the fuel (gas or diesel), ideally leading
it to burn more efficiently, which should cause it to produce fewer emissions.
Your vehicle is still using
its normal fuel so you will still be buying gas or diesel. The reaction simply
allows the fuel to be enriched with hydrogen.
The hydrogen isn't in a
situation where it could be explosive, so safety isn't a problem. Your engine
shouldn't be harmed by the addition of HHO, but...
It's Not So Simple
Don't
be discouraged from trying the conversion, but take the advertising with at
least a couple of grains of salt.
When reading the ads for
converter kits or instructions for doing the conversion yourself, there isn't a
lot of talk about the trade-offs involved in doing the conversion.
How much are you going to
spend making the conversion?
You can make a converter for
about $100 if you are mechanically inclined, or you could spend a couple thousand
dollars if you purchase a converter and have it installed for you.
How much is the fuel
efficiency actually increased? A lot of different numbers are tossed around; it
probably depends on your specific vehicle.
A gallon of gas might go
further when you supplement it with Brown's gas, but water doesn't
spontaneously split itself into its component elements.
The electrolysis reaction
requires energy from your car's electrical system, so you are using the battery or
making your engine work a bit harder to perform the conversion.
The hydrogen
that is produced by the reaction is used to enhance your fuel efficiency, but
oxygen also is produced.
The oxygen sensor in a modern
car could interpret the readings such that it would cause more fuel to be
delivered to the fuel-air mixture, thereby decreasing efficiency and increasing
emissions.
While HHO can burn more
cleanly than gasoline, that does not necessarily mean a car using enriched fuel
would produce fewer emissions.
If the water converter is
highly effective, it seems that enterprising mechanics would be offering to
convert cars for people, who would be lining up to increase their fuel
efficiency. That isn't happening.
The Bottom Line
Can
you make fuel from water that you can use in your car? Yes.
Will the conversion increase
your fuel efficiency and save you money? Maybe.
If you know what you are
doing, probably yes.
Anne
Marie Helmenstine, Ph.D.
· Ph.D. in biomedical sciences from the
University of Tennessee at Knoxville - Oak Ridge National Laboratory.
· Science educator with experience
teaching chemistry, biology, astronomy, and physics at the high school,
college, and graduate levels.
· ThoughtCo and About Education chemistry
expert since 2001.
· Widely-published graphic artist, responsible
for printable periodic tables and other illustrations used in science.
Experience
Anne Helmenstine, Ph.D. has covered chemistry for ThoughtCo
and About Education since 2001, and other sciences since 2013. She taught
chemistry, biology, astronomy, and physics at the high school, college, and
graduate levels. She has worked as a research scientist and also
abstracting and indexing diverse scientific literature for the Department of
Energy.
In addition to her work as a science writer, Dr. Helmenstine
currently serves as a scientific consultant, specializing in problems requiring
an interdisciplinary approach. Previously, she worked as a research
scientist and college professor.
Education
Dr. Helmenstine holds a Ph.D. in biomedical sciences from
the University of Tennessee at Knoxville and a B.A. in physics and
mathematics with a minor in chemistry from Hastings College. In her
doctoral work, Dr. Helmenstine developed ultra-sensitive chemical detection and
medical diagnostic tests.
Anne Marie Helmenstine,
Ph.D.
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publication. https://www.thoughtco.com/running-your-car-on-water-3976076
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