I am not an expert, but I remember by high school chemistry teacher (2005) being a big fan of hydrogen fuel cells. The CEOs of Toyota and Honda both are late to the EV game because of their bets on hybrid and hydrogen.
I see the future of power and transportation as that of increasingly smaller, modular, SMR molten salt nuclear power plants of varying scales with hydrogen plants attached to create local energy and transportation fuel without need for deliveries or outside inputs outside of maintenance.
My understanding is that the CEO of Toyota believed (and I think still believes) that their company cannot be competitive in the EV marketplace. Toyota is one of the most popular brands because they sell durable vehicles to a large worldwide clientele. He doesn’t believe that they can deliver a product at a price point that people can afford (maybe the point, which is why huge Chinese subsidies for the EV supply chain is so consequential). But he does believe that their supply chain can be modified to accompany availability of hydrogen fueling stations.
Also: I’ve heard that Ford loses 60k+ on every EV and Rivian loses north of 80k on every vehicle sold.
My main question is: what do you think are the major headwinds to availability of hydrogen powered vehicles? they seem to make a lot more sense from an adapting existing supply chains perspective, and they solve the battery problem. It allows us to store chemical energy from electricity in a much more efficient way, and it can be refueled quickly and doesn’t add nearly as much weight as EVs. Due to mineral availability I think hydrogen seems like the natural transition to a more durable transportation fuel system, what am I missing?
Hydrogen is extremely flammable and must be transported and stored under very high pressure. Because the hydrogen molecule is so small, it can penetrate even steel. This can cause the metal to become brittle and prone to cracking, allowing the pressurized hydrogen to leak out. There is little naturally occurring hydrogen gas available, so it normally has to be obtained by one of several methods to extract hydrogen electrically from water or chemically from natural gas. This is just the briefest overview. There is a lot of information on the internet.
Do you still have to pay for electricity and gasoline?
Not us, we invested in a solar system and electric cars and have lived and driven with free electricity for eight years now.
The PV solar system paid back in three years in gasoline savings alone.
Liberal Economics.
And we get told to put our used milk cartons in the recycling to Save The Planet. It's a joke.
I am not an expert, but I remember by high school chemistry teacher (2005) being a big fan of hydrogen fuel cells. The CEOs of Toyota and Honda both are late to the EV game because of their bets on hybrid and hydrogen.
I see the future of power and transportation as that of increasingly smaller, modular, SMR molten salt nuclear power plants of varying scales with hydrogen plants attached to create local energy and transportation fuel without need for deliveries or outside inputs outside of maintenance.
My understanding is that the CEO of Toyota believed (and I think still believes) that their company cannot be competitive in the EV marketplace. Toyota is one of the most popular brands because they sell durable vehicles to a large worldwide clientele. He doesn’t believe that they can deliver a product at a price point that people can afford (maybe the point, which is why huge Chinese subsidies for the EV supply chain is so consequential). But he does believe that their supply chain can be modified to accompany availability of hydrogen fueling stations.
Also: I’ve heard that Ford loses 60k+ on every EV and Rivian loses north of 80k on every vehicle sold.
My main question is: what do you think are the major headwinds to availability of hydrogen powered vehicles? they seem to make a lot more sense from an adapting existing supply chains perspective, and they solve the battery problem. It allows us to store chemical energy from electricity in a much more efficient way, and it can be refueled quickly and doesn’t add nearly as much weight as EVs. Due to mineral availability I think hydrogen seems like the natural transition to a more durable transportation fuel system, what am I missing?
Hydrogen is extremely flammable and must be transported and stored under very high pressure. Because the hydrogen molecule is so small, it can penetrate even steel. This can cause the metal to become brittle and prone to cracking, allowing the pressurized hydrogen to leak out. There is little naturally occurring hydrogen gas available, so it normally has to be obtained by one of several methods to extract hydrogen electrically from water or chemically from natural gas. This is just the briefest overview. There is a lot of information on the internet.
Excellent, Bret!
Thanks, Rich. Hope you’re doing great. It’s been way too long.