Alternate fuels

[Keith Moffett]

I have been looking into hydroxi gas and the means of producing it for vehicles.  The method is fairly simple and claims on production range up to 115 gallons / minute.  Seems there are even diesel big rigs using it.  Some as a supplement and some use HHO exclusivly.
I certainly wouldn't test it on our CAT engine first but what about the Hurricane or the generator?  Anyone have some input?
Keith

[JimDyer]

Go for it! I have other projects on the go. There's my anti-matter gun, the microbes that make oii from garden soil, and a couple of others.

[Jeremy Parrett]

Why can't you chuck the C12 and the Alison tanny and replace them with a DC electric motor and 30 or 40  6 volt golf cart batteries all charged by the 12 KW generator already installed in the coach??
The roof on my Marquis could probably accomodate 30 or so 100 watt solar panels.  3000 watts divided by 12 = 250 amps dc ....enough to keep the batteries happy on a sunny day.
If you added a regenerative brake you would recharge on downhill gradients and under braking. Streetcars and Subways have been using this technology for years.

[Sean Donohue]

You laugh... Tiffin has been working on a using locomotive technology (desiel driven generator for the electric motor)

[Keith Moffett]

Laugh at me all you want.  Seriously though, what would you give to get say 15 MPG just most of the time?  By the way, a CAT mechanic got me started on this, so I can't be too far wrong.

[Gerald Farris]

Keith,
The idea sounds appealing, however there is a very high usage of electricity in the electrolysis process to make the fuel. So when you consider the equipment weight, expense, and size, the process becomes impractical for RV use.

Remember, there is no free ride. Producing the electricity needed for the electrolysis process, and carrying the extra weight will require more energy (in the form of diesel fuel) than you will save in added MPG (miles per gallon).

The only way that the system is practical, is that you can use a smaller, more fuel efficient engine and depend on the hydroxi gas for extra power when needed instead of using a larger engine for the limited times that the extra power is required.

Gerald      

[Dick Simonis]

I was mucking about with this technology a few years ago in the early 90's for a variety of reasons.  We spent a year or so playing with different applications and while yes, it did work.....kinda, we could not come up with a practical application.  Mostly, the energy input requirements could not be overcome if there were any kind of payback requirements.

Now granted, there could easily have been technology advances in the intervening years that have changed that problem so it will be interesting to see what you come up with.

One thing I remember is that your water supply best be of very very high quality or there is no end of problems in sight.

If you want more bang for the buck....look at propane injection.  Tryed, proven, plus you have 90% of the equipment already on board.