Hydrogen History

First Hydrogen Car

In 1807, a Swiss inventor by the name of Francois Issac de Rivaz invented the first internal combustion engine and it burned hydrogen from water?

By compressing hydrogen gas and oxygen in a balloon, he started this car engine with a Volta electrical cell ignition. Rivaz was the first holder of the land speed record, at 3 miles an hour.

The Hippomobile

One of Etienne Lenoir of France greatest inventions was the ICE car, that turned water into combustible hydrogen fuel through electrolysis, a one stroke 2 cylinder combustion engine.

Based on his 1860 invention in 1863 came the Hippomobile, Lenoir called his engine this unusual name because the electrolyzed water (hydrogen gas) ran through a small horizontal engine. The engine, running on what Lenoir called “natural cycles,” pulled the fuel mixture in such a way that on the down stroke of the piston, the (exhausted) fuel combusted, powering the engine. The Hippomobile made a test drive from Paris to Joinville-le-Pont (9 miles) in about three hours.

Charles Frazer’s Hydrogen Booster

In 1918 Frazer was the first to U.S. patent a “hydrogen booster” system for internal combustion engines. He stated that his invention increases efficiency, engine will stay cleaner and lower grade fuel can be used with equal performance. His invention was published in the newspaper, publicly demonstrated and then disappeared. Some believe fuel was so cheap that the idea was before its time, others think oil companies may have paid him off.

Over 240 Patents Filed

Since 1930 there has been over 240 patents for engines that get 100 – 250 Miles Per Gallon.
Can you guess who bought all of them? Your Right!

Jules Vernes Talked About Water as Fuel

In 1875, an excerpt from his book Mysterious Island, “Water decomposed into its primitive elements, and decomposed doubtless by electricity, which will then have become a powerful and manageable force. Yes, my friends, I believe that water will one day be employed as a fuel”.

Norway Company Modifies Company Trucks

Norway’s Norsk Hydro aluminum and power company, a furnisher of renewable energy, in 1933 adapted the engine of one of the company’s small trucks to run on hydrogen gas. Fitted with an ammonia reformer to draw out hydrogen, the truck’s modified combustion engine ran on the reclaimed water. This remarkable accomplishment received little publicity at the time due to the Nazi threat in Europe.

200 military Trucks Converted To Run On Hydrogen Gas

In 1941 during WWII, the Nazis had Leningrad, Russia surrounded, cutting off supplies and petroleum was running low. So, military technician Boris Shelishch stepped in an converted a GAZ-AA truck to run on hydrogen gas. After receiving orders from top commanders, Boris Shelishch and his crew converted 200 GAZ-AA trucks in 10 days to run on hydrogen gas. Records documented that all the modified engines fired cleaner and longer than those still using petrol gasoline.

NASA Hydrogen Document 1977

The document states that hydrogen helps gasoline powered internal combustion engines increase mileage and lower emissions. The title of the document is “Emissions And Total Energy Consumption Of A Multicylinder Piston Engine Running On Gasoline And A hydrogen-Gasoline Mixture”. Click here to read the article.

Stan Meyer

Stan Meyer was a great inventor from Ohio, he was most famous for his water fueled dune buggy that ran on water with on board electrolysis. It ran 100 Miles Per Gallon. Meyer said his invention could do what physicists say is impossible — turn water into hydrogen fuel efficiently enough to drive his dune buggy cross-country on 20 gallons straight from the tap. Meyer died unexpectedly after drinking Cranberry juice that he claimed had been poisoned.