Afterburning Hydrogen Fuel Cell Engine

We outline here a patent-pending design of a hydrogen fuel cell engine for a light vehicle (e.g. snowmobile) where fuel can be injected in the engine cooling air stream to provide short bursts of peak power.

The engine provides fuel efficient, zero emission cruise capability at low power settings and a lightweight, ultra-reliable turbine-less solution for high power settings. The weight and space saved by the use of a jet engine for peak power can be used for more fuel tanks.

Contact stefan@hydrocube.org or visit our website (http://hydrocube.org) for more information and to inquire about licensing this patent-pending technology.

Transcript

1. Afterburning Hydrogen Fuel Cell Engine for Snowmobiles and other Off-Road Vehicles (ORVs) • Military grade reliability • Maximum power on demand • Zero emissions A presentation by Hydrocube.org This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA
2. The problem The problem A presentation by Hydrocube.org  Gasoline engines in snowmobiles and other off-road vehicles (ORVs):  Emit greenhouse gases  Emit other air pollutants like benzene and carbon monoxide  Produce a lot of unpleasant noise  Are unreliable  On snowmobiles and all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), space and weight is severely limited for zero emission technologies like lithium ion batteries and hydrogen fuel cells…  Yet consumers of these vehicles still demand high power.  Over 50% of the 125K/year worldwide new snowmobile sales are mountain performance and/or crossover snowmobiles  We can’t replace high performance gasoline snowmobiles unless we can provide a zero-emission solution that can compete on power density and energy density metrics…  while providing high reliability and a seamless user transition from gasoline  Gasoline engines in snowmobiles and other off-road vehicles (ORVs):  Emit greenhouse gases  Emit other air pollutants like benzene and carbon monoxide  Produce a lot of unpleasant noise  Are unreliable  On snowmobiles and all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), space and weight is severely limited for zero emission technologies like lithium ion batteries and hydrogen fuel cells…  Yet consumers of these vehicles still demand high power.  Over 50% of the 125K/year worldwide new snowmobile sales are mountain performance and/or crossover snowmobiles  We can’t replace high performance gasoline snowmobiles unless we can provide a zero-emission solution that can compete on power density and energy density metrics…  while providing high reliability and a seamless user transition from gasoline This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA
3. Review of current zero emission technologies for off road vehicles Review of current zero emission technologies for off road vehicles  Taiga Motors (http://taigamotors.ca)  Lithium battery snowmobile and watercraft manufacturer currently taking pre-orders with production planned to start in 2021  They are offering mountain performance, crossover and utility snowmobile versions  Entry level model starts at $15K USD  The Mountain Performance version has 180 HP (134 kW) of peak power and weighs 266 kg with 131 km of range – cost unknown  HySnow / BRP  A hydrogen fuel cell snowmobile concept prototype has been demonstrated in Austria  Their application is primarily winter ski resort operators in Europe  Taiga Motors (http://taigamotors.ca)  Lithium battery snowmobile and watercraft manufacturer currently taking pre-orders with production planned to start in 2021  They are offering mountain performance, crossover and utility snowmobile versions  Entry level model starts at $15K USD  The Mountain Performance version has 180 HP (134 kW) of peak power and weighs 266 kg with 131 km of range – cost unknown  HySnow / BRP  A hydrogen fuel cell snowmobile concept prototype has been demonstrated in Austria  Their application is primarily winter ski resort operators in Europe A presentation by Hydrocube.org This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-ND
4. Weaknesses of current zero emission technology Weaknesses of current zero emission technology A presentation by Hydrocube.org LITHIUM IS NOT COMPETITIVE WITH GASOLINE OR HYDROGEN ON ENERGY DENSITY (RANGE) THE MAXIMUM DISCHARGE RATE OF LITHIUM BATTERIES IS LIMITED AND FREQUENT HIGH DISCHARGE RESULTS IN SHORTER LIFE OF THE BATTERY PACK THERMAL REGULATION OF LITHIUM BATTERY PACKS FOR COLD CLIMATES USES POWER AND DELAYS STARTUP TIME IN COLD WEATHER ALTHOUGH HYDROGEN HAS HIGHER ENERGY DENSITY, BETTER COLD WEATHER PERFORMANCE AND QUICKER FILL TIMES THAN LITHIUM ION BATTERIES, CURRENT HYDROGEN FUEL CELLS ARE HEAVY AND OCCUPY A LOT OF SPACE THE CURRENT STATE OF THE ART HYDROGEN FUEL CELL TECHNOLOGY IS ONLY SUITABLE FOR WORK OR TOURING SNOWMOBILES AND ORVS AND NOT HIGH-PERFORMANCE MOUNTAIN OR CROSSOVER MODELS
5. Power and energy density metrics Power and energy density metrics 0.6 1.3 2.5 5 153 0.1 1 10 100 1000 Power to weight ratio of engine (kW/kg) (log scale) H2 Fuel Cell drive system Lithium ion drive system Rotax 600-R E-TEC gasoline engine Supercapacitor drive system Rocket engine 0.25 0.94 1.6 1.7 11.5 0.1 1 10 100 Energy density of fuel (kWh/kg) (log scale) Lithium ion cobalt Hydrogen at 35 Mpa (shorter tank) Hydrogen at 70 Mpa (long tank) Hydrogen (nanomaterial) Gasoline (raw) Note: H2 fuel metric includes the storage tank. The raw energy density of H2 is 33 kWh/kg, showing it is potentially 3x superior to gasoline with advancements in H2 storage technology.
6. Market-based lithium risks Market-based lithium risks  We believe that lithium is currently underpriced, and the price will significantly increase in future  Lithium packs must be replaced on average every 1,000 full cycles (unless additional lithium is added to act as a buffer)  High power and/or long-range vehicles use a lot of lithium  The mining of lithium is a very energy intensive process that consumes fossil fuels that are currently underpriced by all the relevant governments  Lithium is only mined in several countries globally that are all controlled by corporate-friendly governments that will not oppose privatization and monopolization  Argentina, Chile, and the new right-wing government in Bolivia  Australia  (Limited amounts) USA, Canada and China  A cartel like OPEC will form around lithium and reduce supply and raise prices once electric vehicle manufacturers are reliant on it  We believe that lithium is currently underpriced, and the price will significantly increase in future  Lithium packs must be replaced on average every 1,000 full cycles (unless additional lithium is added to act as a buffer)  High power and/or long-range vehicles use a lot of lithium  The mining of lithium is a very energy intensive process that consumes fossil fuels that are currently underpriced by all the relevant governments  Lithium is only mined in several countries globally that are all controlled by corporate-friendly governments that will not oppose privatization and monopolization  Argentina, Chile, and the new right-wing government in Bolivia  Australia  (Limited amounts) USA, Canada and China  A cartel like OPEC will form around lithium and reduce supply and raise prices once electric vehicle manufacturers are reliant on it A presentation by Hydrocube.org This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-SA
7. Our solution Our solution  We have developed a patent pending “triple hybrid” engine that incorporates a hydrogen fuel cell, a small supercapacitor bank, and a jet engine afterburner  All three engines use the same hydrogen fuel as the power source  The user can select Eco (fuel cell only) or Sport (fuel cell + afterburner) modes to optimize their fuel use for the desired driving conditions  Supercapacitors work to their full extent at – 40 C, last about 20,000 hours of use, and start up in cold weather with zero lag time  We are planning to offer Work / Touring and Mountain / Race models:  Work / Touring: 15 kW Hydrogen fuel cell, supercapacitor, and simple afterburner  Mountain / Race: ? kW Hydrogen fuel cell, lithium battery pack, and jet engine with turbine  We have developed a patent pending “triple hybrid” engine that incorporates a hydrogen fuel cell, a small supercapacitor bank, and a jet engine afterburner  All three engines use the same hydrogen fuel as the power source  The user can select Eco (fuel cell only) or Sport (fuel cell + afterburner) modes to optimize their fuel use for the desired driving conditions  Supercapacitors work to their full extent at – 40 C, last about 20,000 hours of use, and start up in cold weather with zero lag time  We are planning to offer Work / Touring and Mountain / Race models:  Work / Touring: 15 kW Hydrogen fuel cell, supercapacitor, and simple afterburner  Mountain / Race: ? kW Hydrogen fuel cell, lithium battery pack, and jet engine with turbine A presentation by Hydrocube.org
8. Prototype Prototype  We are currently building a prototype of this engine based on a utility touring snowmobile frame (Yamaha VK540)  Because this is a work snowmobile, we are using supercapacitors instead of batteries and no turbine in the exhaust stream for optimal reliability  Future mountain performance versions can use lithium batteries instead of supercapacitors and a turbine in the exhaust stream to boost jet engine efficiency (if replacement of the battery pack and turbine is not a concern)  The prototype will be demonstrated in this upcoming winter (2020/21) in the Yukon Territory. Exact location and time TBA.  We are inviting manufacturer’s representatives, potential investors, government funders, media entities and interested clients (snowmobile users) to the demonstration  Please contact stefan@hydrocube.org or call +1-867-333-0753 for more information and to register your interest  We are currently building a prototype of this engine based on a utility touring snowmobile frame (Yamaha VK540)  Because this is a work snowmobile, we are using supercapacitors instead of batteries and no turbine in the exhaust stream for optimal reliability  Future mountain performance versions can use lithium batteries instead of supercapacitors and a turbine in the exhaust stream to boost jet engine efficiency (if replacement of the battery pack and turbine is not a concern)  The prototype will be demonstrated in this upcoming winter (2020/21) in the Yukon Territory. Exact location and time TBA.  We are inviting manufacturer’s representatives, potential investors, government funders, media entities and interested clients (snowmobile users) to the demonstration  Please contact stefan@hydrocube.org or call +1-867-333-0753 for more information and to register your interest A presentation by Hydrocube.org
9. About Hydrocube.org About Hydrocube.org  We are a Canadian-controlled federal not for profit corporation (under the Canada NFP Act)  We design renewable energy technology and license out patented technologies under a socially and environmentally conscious revenue model  While our incorporation format is incompatible with traditional equity…  Investors and funders are eligible for a direct ROI from patent licensing revenues proportional to their financial input into each project  Engineers who perform unpaid R&D work also receive a portion of patent licensing revenues  Hydrocube.org takes a 20% retained earnings tax to fund future R&D and intellectual property costs (reduced to 10% after early growth stage)  E.g. a $50K cash investment from an investor + $30K in unpaid salary for engineers + $20K in patenting costs results in revenues being split 40% / 24% / 16% / 20%  Contact us at stefan@hydrocube.org or +1-867-333-0753 if you are interested in funding us  We are a Canadian-controlled federal not for profit corporation (under the Canada NFP Act)  We design renewable energy technology and license out patented technologies under a socially and environmentally conscious revenue model  While our incorporation format is incompatible with traditional equity…  Investors and funders are eligible for a direct ROI from patent licensing revenues proportional to their financial input into each project  Engineers who perform unpaid R&D work also receive a portion of patent licensing revenues  Hydrocube.org takes a 20% retained earnings tax to fund future R&D and intellectual property costs (reduced to 10% after early growth stage)  E.g. a $50K cash investment from an investor + $30K in unpaid salary for engineers + $20K in patenting costs results in revenues being split 40% / 24% / 16% / 20%  Contact us at stefan@hydrocube.org or +1-867-333-0753 if you are interested in funding us A presentation by Hydrocube.org