I've thought about it... (archive)

I am not an expert on hydrogen as a fuel source, but there has been work done in the area and hydrogen-powered vehicles have been deployed, in a limited way, in some areas of the U.S. Yes, you would have hydrogen "gas stations," but they wouldn't work exactly like your regular gas station. And just because H2 is one of the lightest gases and the smallest molecule doesn't mean it would leak out of a container! Hydrogen is regularly stored and transported in cylinders as are many gases. But H2 does require a special type of fuel tank, as I vaguely recall. There are other engineering obstacles that have to be overcome, such as the fact that H2 causes brittleness in some metals. And there is always the chicken/egg problem: cars aren't accepted until fuel stations are available and fuel stations aren't built until cars are on the road.

My guess is that a properly built hydrogen-powered engine could deliver as much power as a gasoline-powered engine.

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