HHO Generator

[NathanielA]

I have been looking at this Hydrogen generator stuff on the web.. It uses stainless steel plates inside a non conducting vessle which with water and baking soda, and about 20 amps DC current produces hydrogen which is led to the closest location of the throttle butterfly valve. Have even sees videos of these hydrogen generators on small engines running them without gasoline. Also looked up the chip which can be tied in to the OBDii plug so it can trim the o2 sensor’s output so that it will actually trim the mix without harming the valves or pistons, because the hydogen boosts the burn efficiency of the gas. Will this work? Can it indeed help us save fuel? I have a 2007 Honda Ridgeline with a 3.5 liter engine, and it gets about 19mpg on the highway, and I dont have a lead foot.

Will this work? Can you build one for us in the cool shop, Eric, and let us see what it really does, or will big oil companies come get you and shut you down because you are interfering with their income?

Thanks folks, and any other input I get on this from you guys will be appreciated

Topic

[3SheetsDiesel]

Snake oil. The power to make the hydrogen has to come from somewhere, in this case it’s coming from your truck’s alternator, causing it to work harder, in turn causing the engine to use more fuel. Also, electrolysis (the process of gettin gwater to break up into hydrogen and oxygen) takes a long time to get hydrogen in any real quantity, so it’s not going to have any positive efect on vehicle operation whatsoever.

If youwant to build one anyway, by all means go ahead, just don’t expect it to do anything productive. Sorry to crap all over your dreams like that.

[Dr. Jerryrigger]

I have heard good reports from a few people who have made these. The thing is you have to make or buy a really good efficient HHO generator (expensive). And at best you may save 8% on fuel, and some people can’t get any improvements with a specific car.
To do it right you’re looking at $800 plus if you make everything yourself. And then you need to maintain the system, which isn’t free.

As to the conservation of energy argument against the HHO; The idea is that you can get more power out of your fuel (less burnt in the cat) and also lean out your trim, which can over come the extra alternator draw. It’s a tricky balance to get right.

All and all it’s not really worth the money and work unless it seems like a fun hobby for you.

[jacobnbr1]

Hydrogen works but you are not going to get the correct answer here.

You need to seek out a remap of the powertrain control unit before your cars computer will even allow any changes like this to make a positive reaction.

Ignition timing and fuel mixtures are key and those are pre programmed for a certain function and the whole purpose of the pcm is to maintain a 14-7-1fuel ratio. Whatever sensors you try to trick will only cause another reaction that is going to counter whatever you are trying to accomplish.

You can put it on a carburated car because you can make the adjustments manually and will likely see the affects but I wouldn’t bother wasting your time with that crap because I’m certain the mass engineers have already looked at it but can’t get a good stable reliable outcome not to mention the stupid generator will need cleaned and flushed every two weeks or so.

Some day there will be a breakthrough but not right now…

[pcmdjason]

Also HHO systems are prone to backfire and blow up if not designed correctly.

Especially if a perfect mix of hydrogen and oxygen are accumulating anywhere such as an intake manifold or in the vessle that generates them.

[dreamer2355]

I think hydrogen vehicles are what we will be driving around eventually and i think hybrids are just a ‘fad’ till the hydrogen technology really takes off.

[stormchicken]

I think that you might be right. Nissan made one not too long ago, and GM made a prototype hummer called the H2H before they went bankrupt. There is a guy in Arizona that claims to know how to safely store hydrogen in tanks using a material called hydride (apparently illegal because of it’s use in nuclear weapons). I think that the technology is out there, but the inevitable economic backlash is keeping it from rising up. Oil is big business, and a-lot of american jobs depend on it. But, I would have no problem converting my cars if there was a proven way to do it. So far all I have seen is some dudes in their garages making brown gas and lighting it like a big fart in chemistry class. I saw a youtube video of two guys driving a converted dodge ram, but they haven’t put anything up in a very long time.

I want to know if anybody has successfully done this and used it as an additive, or primary fuel source with any success for an extended period of time.

Also, any mechanics out there: what are the possible downsides to using hydrogen in a current internal combustion engine? Obviously moisture could be an issue. But what about explosion velocity (Brown gas is supposed to explode much faster than gasoline) could that damage rocker arms etc…? Combustion chambers?

Hypothetically, what would have to be done (if anything) to prepare an engine to run on HHO or Hydrogen fuel?

I think about being able to afford to run a big block engine, and it gives me the chills, and an ENORMOUS grin on my face. The true return of the muscle car.

[pcmdjason]

Well possible issues…

Air is 70+ percent Nitrogen. When you combine nitrogen with hydrogen, you get ammonia.

Now I think that hydrogen is more likely to react with O2 than N2, but if by some change you get too rich on your mixture your exhaust may start to smell like a cat box.

[stormchicken]

Yummy….. But at least you wouldn’t need catalytic converters. That rotten egg smell is pretty bad too. I think the ammonia might be worse though.

[Tony01013]

This is a fraud. HHO is basically creating hydrogen gas by running electricity through water (electrolysis). Supposedly you can then use the hydrogen to power your car. Unfortunately the amount of power (electricity) you put in far exceeds the energy than you get out of burning the hydrogen gas. This is the Second Law of Thermodynamics. Energy has to be conserved, energy cannot be created nor destroyed, only converted from one form to another. When you convert energy from one form to another you lose efficiency. Yada yada yada, to sum it up it doesn’t work. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Energy_conversion_efficiency

[Tony01013]

Now, if you’re talking about a Hydrogen fuel cell that’s a whole different story. Technology is too expensive to retrofit to a car. Running hydrogen to use in an internal combustion engine is impactical, I think because where would you get it and how much would it cost. If you’re up to it, I think the best route to go is an LPG conversion. It’s practical, doesn’t cost that much (relatively), and you can find propane everywhere. To really take advantage of the propane though you should incread the compression ration which isn’t exactly easy without rebuilding the engine.I think LPG get lower gas mileage but it works out to be cheaper in the long run. LPG is also a lot cleaner for the engine and you can extend your oil change intervals.

[Iulian Dumitrascu]

Hi. regarding the HHO generators, look what I found good to generate electricity needed for electrolisys, that could be used on the car and not use the alternator: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6JH-GgLe1xs&t=51s

[Author]

Replies