Engineering a fuel alternative

The UCLA School of Engineering and Applied Science is not a
foreign player in the search for alternative fuel sources. For the
past 30 years, it has conducted in-depth research regarding
hydrogen fuel.

With the prices of gasoline on the rise and the knowledge that
fossil fuel sources cannot be replenished, companies such as
Daimler Chrysler are taking note and designing and manufacturing
“hybrid vehicles” that combine the traditional use of
fossil fuel as a source of energy with more environmentally
friendly methods.

The engineering school’s involvement in such innovations
can be traced back to 1972, when a hydrogen-powered car won the
Urban Vehicle Design Competition.

“The entrance of the vehicle into the contest had no
outside sponsors. It was only a year later, in 1973, that the
Department of Transportation showed a lot of support for research
into alternative fuels,” said William Van Vorst, professor
emeritus of chemical engineering, who was in charge of the
project.

Before the energy crisis of 1973, which was caused by an oil
embargo, the research into alternative fuels was done primarily to
explore ways to make transportation more environmentally
friendly.

“When interest curtailed as the energy crisis came to an
end, research was unfortunately stunted,” Van Vorst said.

The current nature of rising gas prices in the past year has
once again sparked major interest in alternative energy
sources.

According to the Lundberg Survey ““ a study of 7,000 gas
stations nationwide ““ the average retail price for gasoline
jumped about $0.19 per gallon overall from March 18 to April 8.
Though gas prices dropped recently by $0.045 per gallon, they still
typically remain at over $2 per gallon, according to the study.

Supporters of alternative fuels say hydrogen fuel is beneficial
not just for economic reasons, but health reasons as well.

“Aside from gas price issues, the major driving force for
the use of hydrogen as an energy carrier is the beneficial health
effect on urban populations,” said chemical engineering
Professor Vasilios Manousiouthakis, chair of a hydrogen fuel cell
project.

A hydrogen fuel cell is being designed and built by a team of
engineers lead by Van Vorst and Manousiouthakis. The scientists say
they hope the cell will solve some of the problems associated with
hydrogen fuel, such as storage.

Professors at the engineering school contend that hydrogen fuel
compatibility with automobiles is up to two times more efficient
than that of gasoline.

“Of course, the fuel cell has to go a long way before
economic productivity can be visualized. Still, there is a
seriousness about hydrogen fuel cell cars that wasn’t even
there five years ago,” Van Vorst said.

But there remains skepticism about the feasibility of hydrogen
fuel cell cars as a solution to the limited supply of oil reserves
and an expanding population.

Some experts say hydrogen fuel, though it appears to be more
eco-friendly than conventional fuels, is not as efficient as it is
made out to be.

Automakers, for example, say the “well to wheel”
efficiency ““ or how much energy it takes to obtain hydrogen
fuel from oil ““ for cell hybrid vehicles is around 30
percent, whereas gasoline vehicles have a “well to
wheel” efficiency of about 15 percent.

“Hydrogen gas is an energy carrier, so it has to come from
somewhere,” said Manousiouthakis.

“There’s this hype out there that exists because
people think that hydrogen is an energy source,” said Michael
Bazdarich, a senior forecaster for the UCLA Anderson School of
Management. “The reality is that the energy needed for the
hydrogen fuel process comes from fossil fuels.”

With reports from Bruin wire services.