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05-12-2013, 03:57 AM | #1 |
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Hydrogen Powered Model A
I was visiting the Tampa Bay Auto Museum yesterday and in the collection of cars was this Model A that can run on Hydrogen. It burns hard wood chips in the black burner at the rear of the car on the driver side and then process the smoke etc. to make hydrogen in the green tank on the right side of the car. Very unique.
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05-12-2013, 05:04 AM | #2 |
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Re: Hydrogen Powered Model A
Called a Gassifier, Those are nice pics James. Here is a article I had found.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gasification
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05-12-2013, 06:13 AM | #3 |
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Re: Hydrogen Powered Model A
Hope some of our Aussie and NZ friends will chime in here. That process was used there, and other countries, during WII when no gasoline was available for cars. I believe part of the fuel mixture was carbon monoxide. Dangerous but quite flammable.
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05-12-2013, 07:32 AM | #4 |
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Re: Hydrogen Powered Model A
I just found this article about the car you pictured James! I'll have to go to that museum sometime when I'm home.
The older car is no less ingenious. The 1929 Ford Model A Tudor was originally sold in Spain after being produced at the Barcelona assembly plant. At some point, most likely in the 1930s, the owner added a gasification system, which essentially produces the car’s own synthetic natural gas as a fuel by means of a wood gas generator. The process uses high temperature to turn a wood-based fuel, usually charcoal, into a burnable gas consisting of hydrogen, carbon monoxide and methane. The synthetic gas can then achieve combustion in the vehicle’s engine. Around this time, Spain was embroiled in a brutal civil war and civilian fuel supplies were severely limited. Fuel rationing during World War II resulted in wood-gas systems finding significant use in Europe, Britain and even the United States. They’re still widely used in parts of China. The Tampa Bay Auto Museum is located in Pinellas Park, Florida. For more information, visit TBAuto.org.
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05-12-2013, 08:58 AM | #5 |
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Re: Hydrogen Powered Model A
I wonder if these wood burners produced tar or any special deposits that would shorten the engine life?
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05-12-2013, 09:18 AM | #6 |
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Re: Hydrogen Powered Model A
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05-12-2013, 09:36 AM | #7 | |
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Re: Hydrogen Powered Model A
Quote:
He reported about 5000 miles per large scale clean out and refurbish, to include new rings and valves. This with a 1950s era pickup. It's been a while since I've explored the site but much can be seen on this subject generally at http://www.gengas.se/welcome_to_www_gengas_se.htm The old Mother Earth News also had a lot to say on this subject - ALWAYS in the most glowing terms (as befits their enthusiasm and marketing.) They were always prone to overspeak in their agenda which included at least two generator gas vehicles (One a Ford F150 pickup IIRC.) I see they're still beating this drum http://www.motherearthnews.com/green...#axzz2T5aOmY6R Perhaps a lot of the issues have been overcome? One hopes. Joe K
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05-12-2013, 10:40 AM | #8 |
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Re: Hydrogen Powered Model A
Yes, any unburnt hydrocarbons (smoke) derived from wood when condensed to its' dewpoint forms creosote. Creosote when warm is gummy like tar, when cold is becomes a very hard and abrasive form of carbon. I would imagine that any of it left in a cylinder to cool down would eventually start to cut away the metal in the cylinders.
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05-12-2013, 12:04 PM | #9 |
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Re: Hydrogen Powered Model A
They used them overe here too after WW2.
No cars left, but they ran on "Holzvergaser" Ja - Tom - All of those Holzvergaser`s shortened the life of the woods |
05-12-2013, 12:39 PM | #10 |
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Re: Hydrogen Powered Model A
Are you sure that the wood gas is Hydrogen? I thought it was methane. However, There was a "Dual Fuel" Hydrogen/gasoline powered model A at Renningers two weeks ago. It could be switched to run on gas or hydrogen. It was both primitive and sophisticated at the same time. It used Four glass mayonaise jars that bubbled the hydrogen out of just plain water with a metal catalyst.
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05-12-2013, 01:18 PM | #11 |
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Re: Hydrogen Powered Model A
A man in England created Methane gas from HOG manure & some sort of acid, pressurised it, and ran his Hillman car on it. I wonder if it "pinged" or "GRUNTED"?? Bill W.
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05-12-2013, 03:32 PM | #12 | |
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Re: Hydrogen Powered Model A
In the wiki link I posted it said
Quote:
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05-12-2013, 04:15 PM | #13 |
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Re: Hydrogen Powered Model A
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05-12-2013, 04:19 PM | #14 |
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Re: Hydrogen Powered Model A
Yes, I confirm it was used in New Zealand in WW2, due to wartime fuel shortages. I don't understand the process but the firebox had to be cleaned out regularly and a feature of NZ travel at the time was little heaps of charcoal left on the side of the road (I remember hearing my Dad talking about it). And a friend has a Model A which used to be set up for a gasification plant and until recently it still had some of the plumbing installed. Somewhere I have seen a photo of a Model A sedan crossing a South Island bridge with a wood-burner set up on the back - wish I could find it.
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05-12-2013, 05:28 PM | #15 |
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Re: Hydrogen Powered Model A
I raise cattle. Does anyone know how to build one of these? Free fuel. Just kidding!
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05-12-2013, 07:42 PM | #16 |
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Re: Hydrogen Powered Model A
T.D, we burned them "Cow'sford" giant briquetes in our iron heater in West Texas to keep our "patootie" from freezin' OFF! They ain't NO trees out there, just FLAT to the horizon & the only known hill is ANT HILLS!!! Bill W.
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05-12-2013, 11:44 PM | #17 |
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Re: Hydrogen Powered Model A
Here is an AA set up with the wood burner in the Den Hartogh Ford Museum (NL):
One also sold at the RM auction of the Aalholm Slot collection in DK: http://www.rmauctions.com/lots/lot.cfm?lot_id=1050124 Fordially, Brad in Maryland |
05-13-2013, 08:39 AM | #18 |
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Re: Hydrogen Powered Model A
If you read about the gasification systems being built today, most use quite an extensive filter to clean the gas up before it is burned in the engine.
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05-14-2013, 01:42 AM | #19 |
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Re: Hydrogen Powered Model A
Every Model A ever made was/is hydrogen powered! Gasoline is a hydrocarbon fuel (which is mostly hydrogen and carbon).
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05-27-2013, 05:56 PM | #20 | |
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Re: Hydrogen Powered Model A
Quote:
Nope. Wood gas is tough as hell on engines. Having a big cooler and filter to deliver the wood gas (mostly carbon monoxide) as pure as possible was the major design task for the Germans and the Brazillians and it still crummed up the engines. Mother Earth News puts out a lot of dangerous bafflegab but not as bad as in the seventies because they don't want to get sued. The Brazillian gasogenios on buses had huge cooler filter assemblies all over them. Homebrew efforts usually sorely fail in this department. I think the Germans ran charcoal as much as possible in theirs and stioll there were problems but it beat walking. Aside from all that if wood gas ever became popular we would have no more forests. |
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