Gasoline or hydrogen optional

2011/02/01 Elhuyar Zientzia Iturria: Elhuyar aldizkaria

• Garraioak
• Teknologia
• Energia berriztagarriak

A UPNA research team makes a Volkswagen Polo vehicle run on hydrogen and gasoline

A research group of the Public University of Navarra has managed to adapt a Volkswagen Polo vehicle and circulate with hydrogen. This fuel does not produce greenhouse emissions or pollutants.

Another advance of the UPNA Hydrogen Group. In fact, in February 2009 it was achieved for the first time in Spain to launch a conventional car engine with hydrogen. Now, in addition to the engine, the rest of the vehicle's components have been adapted to run on hydrogen.

In the adaptation work of the car, first the electronic control of the combustion of the hydrogen in the car computer, along with the rest of the signals and controls, had to be introduced. Then, they have placed a device on the control panel to the Volkswagen Polo that allows changing the operation of the engine to circulate with gasoline or hydrogen.

Another novelty has been that the hydrogen that burns the car has occurred at the University itself. This has led to lower costs: to obtain the energy equivalent of a liter of gasoline it takes about 14 kWh electric. Although there are numerous electric tariffs, the cost of this electricity is similar to that of a liter of gasoline.