Humans have a long held a fascination for modes of transportation that consume minimum fuel, or that operate on fuels that are widely and easily available. Of course, as two of the most widely available substance on the planet, water and air have been the object of much research as a means of powering our vehicles. However, the only transportation that we have been able to operate in a sustainable manner by using water, has been horses – that is, until Electriq Global.
The Australian Israeli startup has worked out a highly efficient way of leveraging a water based fuel to power its electric vehicles. The fuel is over half water, and thanks to Electriq’s technology, hydrogen can efficiently be extracted from it to generate electricity to power up our vehicles.
As per the company,
The Electriq~Global system contains three key elements: the liquid fuel (Electriq~Fuel), which reacts with a catalyst (Electriq~Switch) to release hydrogen on demand, then the spent fuel is captured and taken back to a plant where it is replenished with hydrogen and water for re-use (Electriq~Recycling). This entire process is inherently safe and enables zero emissions vehicles.
Another interesting thing about the fuel, is the fact that it is extremely safe and stable at ambient temperatures and pressures. What’s more, in comparison with lithium-ion batteries or compressed Hydrogen technologies, Electriq Global’s water based fuel offers twice the range at half the cost. Energy density is also up to 15 times that of electric batteries currently being used by top-notch manufacturers like Tesla.
To give you some insights into the power of this new water based fuel: Electric batteries usually provide a range of around 250 km and require up to 300 minutes to recharge. On the other hand, buses powered by the Electriq~Fuel were able to offer a range of 1,000 km, with recharge times of just 5 minutes. And of course, it doesn’t hurt that water, which forms the bulk of the fuel, is also the most widely available substance on the planet.
Speaking on the topic, Electriq~Global CEO Guy N. Michrowski said:
Our technology brings dramatic news of improvement in driving range, refueling time, and cost of fuel and changes the rules of the game in many fields, including transportation and energy storage.
