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The gas has been presented in the media as a fuel for welding and for cars, with the reporters claiming that it extracts energy from water. ] and others point out that the welding technique was invented decades earlier by William Rhodes and Yull Brown, and that similar dubious claims have been made about ] and ]s in the past, but are known hoaxes. Water cannot be used as a fuel source; it can only be used to generate ], which functions as an ]. (See ].)<ref name="Randi new">{{cite web The gas has been presented in the media as a fuel for welding and for cars, with the reporters claiming that it extracts energy from water. ] and others point out that the welding technique was invented decades earlier by William Rhodes and Yull Brown, and that similar dubious claims have been made about ] and ]s in the past, but are known hoaxes. Water cannot be used as a fuel source; it can only be used to generate ], which then functions as an ], not an ]. (See ].)<ref name="Randi new">{{cite web
|url=http://www.randi.org/jr/2006-06/060906just.html#i3 |url=http://www.randi.org/jr/2006-06/060906just.html#i3
|title=That HHO idea isn't new |title=That HHO idea isn't new

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HHO gas
ClaimsProcess for electrolyzing water that results in a gas with properties that defy the laws of physics
Related scientific disciplines
Year proposed1997
Original proponentsDenny Klein
Subsequent proponents
(Overview of pseudoscientific concepts)

HHO ("Hybrid Hydrogen Oxygen") or Klein gas is a gas created by an electrolysis process from water, which is claimed to have special properties.

Aquygen is the commercial trademark for this gas used by Hydrogen Technology Applications, Inc. (HTA), which sells gas generators for use in welding and cutting torches (a form of water torch). HTA also claims that the gas is useful as a "primary fuel source or a fuel additive", enhancing the fuel efficiency of gasoline, diesel and aircraft turbine engines".

Ruggero Maria Santilli of the Institute for Basic Research wrote a paper in the 2006 International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, based on spectrometry analyses of the gas, which he claims support his non-standard "magnecule" theory of physics. Some of his claimed special properties would defy known laws of physics. There exists no peer reviewed article in reputable scientific literature substantiating the claims put forward by proponents of this gas.

The gas has been presented in the media as a fuel for welding and for cars, with the reporters claiming that it extracts energy from water. James Randi and others point out that the welding technique was invented decades earlier by William Rhodes and Yull Brown, and that similar dubious claims have been made about Brown's gas and water-fuelled cars in the past, but are known hoaxes. Water cannot be used as a fuel source; it can only be used to generate hydrogen, which then functions as an energy carrier, not an energy source. (See hydrogen economy.)

Properties

File:HHO gas 5 amu.png
A mass spectrometry scan of HHO gas created with a PerkinElmer GC-MS Clarus 500, by SunLabs at the University of Tampa, Florida, showing a peak at 5 amu. Ruggero Santilli claims that this peak can only be explained by his "magnecule" theory.

Although it is formed in the same way as oxyhydrogen (also called Brown's gas), and shares many identical properties, HHO is claimed by HTA and Santilli to have unusual properties that distinguish it as a unique compound. Like oxyhydrogen, HHO gas is odorless, colorless and lighter than air.

Proponents allege that:

  • HHO gas exhibits a widely varying "energy content", and that the flame changes temperature in the presence of different materials, ranging from a relatively cold flame (259°F) in open air to over 10,000°F, "instantaneously" sublimating tungsten and melting brick. All normal fuels have a fixed value of energy content (Santilli measures in BTU/scf).
    • The demonstration of "sublimating" tungsten by heating it in air is highly misleading, however. In air, the tungsten oxidizes easily to tungsten trioxide, which forms solid smoke particles and has a much lower boiling point of about 1700 °C. (This is why light bulbs with tungsten filaments are filled with an inert gas like nitrogen or argon.) A real demonstration of sublimation of tungsten would need to be done in an oxygen-free environment.
  • HHO gas does not follow the fundamental PVT law for gases, changing from a mixture of hydrogen and oxygen into liquid water at 150 psi. This would require a chemical change as well as a phase change.
  • HHO gas adheres anomalously to gases, liquids and solids, including to gaseous fuels (such as natural gas, magnegas fuel, and others) and liquid fuels (such as diesel, gasoline, liquid petroleum, and others).

Magnecules

Santilli, basing his theory on claims of variable energy content and flames which can "melt instantaneously tungsten and bricks", claimed that HHO gas has a "unique structure with a chemical composition that cannot be described by modern science". He claims that gas chromatography-mass spectrometry experiments show evidence of stable clusters composed of individual H and O atoms, and the molecules Template:Hydrogen, Template:Oxygen and H2O. According to Santilli these cannot be explained by conventional chemical bonds. He proposes, instead, that the gas contains an oxygen-hydrogen hybrid, based on a structure he names a "magnecule", in a structure which has yet to be understood. HHO is described to have the structure (H×H)–O where “×” represents Santilli's magnecular bond and “–” the conventional molecular bond. The transition from the conventional H–O–H configuration to the new (H×H)–O species is explained as being a change of the electric polarization of water caused by the electrolyzer. These claims have not yet been verified through multiple independent research studies nor are they endorsed or held by any scientist of repute in the field.

News coverage

The promotion of this gas has been featured in television programs that did not comment on its veracity.

Water-fuelled car

Main article: water-fuelled car

News covering the promotion presented HHO as an "energy source" or "alternative fuel", and refer to HTA's demonstration vehicle as a "water-powered car" (a common hoax/urban legend that exploits popular misconceptions about the energy balance involved in electrolysis and combustion). This flaw in reasoning has been explained in the news programs by Dr. Ali T-Raissi, Hydrogen Research Director of the Florida Solar Energy Center, and Sieglinde Kinne, Energy Efficiency Engineer for the Kentucky Pollution Prevention Center: Creating hydrogen from water requires an energy input, which is always greater than the energy produced by burning it.

Although HTA does not actually claim a water-powered car (they describe their own demonstration vehicle as a "hybrid vehicle" with a "1.9 liter engine with little modifications" in which HHO is injected in addition to normal gasoline), they do state that HHO can be used as a "primary fuel source or a fuel additive", and that water is the "source of HHO's energy". They claim that HHO gas can be injected into a normal automobile gasoline engine to increase fuel efficiency by 30-50%, eliminate CO2 from the exhaust, and can increase the "thermal content" of liquid fuels like gasoline and diesel. According to Steve Lusko, project manager for HTA, the decrease in emissions is due to the highly efficient burn.

See also

References

  1. Company: Our History - HTA website
  2. US patent 7191737, Dennis Klein, "Hydrogen generator for uses in a vehicle fuel system", issued 2007-03-20 
  3. "Klein gas brouhaha". Mobjectivist blog. 2004-11-06. Retrieved 2007-06-10. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help); External link in |work= (help)
  4. "Company: Our History". Hydrogen Technology Applications, Inc. 2006. Retrieved 2007-04-05.
  5. ^ Santilli, Ruggero Maria (2006). "A new gaseous and combustible form of water" (DOC). International Journal of Hydrogen Energy. 31 (9): pp. 1113–1128. doi:10.1016/j.ijhydene.2005.11.006. Retrieved 2007-02-20. {{cite journal}}: |pages= has extra text (help); Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  6. R. M. Santilli, A. K. Aringazin (December 20, 2001). "Structure and Combustion of Magnegases". Hadronic Journal (27): p. 299-330. arXiv:physics/0112066. {{cite journal}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
  7. Santilli, Ruggero Maria (2006-02-17). "The Novel 'Controlled Intermediate Nuclear Fusion' and its Possible Industrial Realization as Predicted by Hadronic Mechanics and Chemistry". arXiv:physics/0602125. {{cite journal}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite journal requires |journal= (help)

    DEFINITION: Santilli’s magnecules are stable clusters consisting of individual atoms (H, C, O, etc.), and ordinary molecules (CO, H{sub}2{/sub}O, etc.) bonded together by opposing magnetic polarities originating from toroidal polarizations of the orbitals of electrons. Numerous new substances with magnecular structures have been identified experimentally to date, among which we indicate MagneGas, MagneHydrogen, HHO, and others under industrial development.

  8. Randi, James (2006-06-09). "That HHO idea isn't new". Swift. James Randi Educational Foundation. Retrieved 2007-06-05. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  9. "Topic: Magical water fuel: A successful hoax? Or, what's the catch?". Snopes forum. May 13, 2006. Retrieved 2007-03-30.
  10. "Aquygen: A New Kind of Gas - Key features establishing the novelty of Aquygen Gas". Hydrogen Technology Applications, Inc. 2006. Retrieved 2007-04-05.
  11. ^ Rogers, Will (November 27, 2005). "Clearwater Man Puts Technology To Work". Tampa Tribune. Retrieved 2005-11-29. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  12. R. M. Santilli, A. K. Aringazin (December 20, 2001). "Structure and Combustion of Magnegases". Hadronic Journal (27): p. 299-330. arXiv:physics/0112066. {{cite journal}}: |pages= has extra text (help)
  13. Santilli, Ruggero Maria (2006-02-17). "The Novel 'Controlled Intermediate Nuclear Fusion' and its Possible Industrial Realization as Predicted by Hadronic Mechanics and Chemistry". arXiv:physics/0602125. {{cite journal}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help); Check date values in: |date= (help); Cite journal requires |journal= (help)

    DEFINITION: Santilli’s magnecules are stable clusters consisting of individual atoms (H, C, O, etc.), and ordinary molecules (CO, H{sub}2{/sub}O, etc.) bonded together by opposing magnetic polarities originating from toroidal polarizations of the orbitals of electrons. Numerous new substances with magnecular structures have been identified experimentally to date, among which we indicate MagneGas, MagneHydrogen, HHO, and others under industrial development.

  14. Craig Patrick reporting. Water Power (Youtube video) (Television newscast). Fox 26 News. Retrieved 2007-04-15.
  15. Adams, David (October 12, 2006). "Florida's very own water fueled car". St. Petersburg Times. Retrieved 2007-03-01.
  16. "Water Could One Day Replace Gas". KSBI-TV 52 Oklahoma. May 23, 2006. Retrieved 2007-03-01.
  17. "Cars Running On Water?". KXAN, Austin, TX. May 24, 2006. Retrieved 2007-03-01. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  18. Flack, Eric (September 6, 2006). "Car Powered By Water A Reality". Wave 3 News. Retrieved 2007-03-01. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  19. Water-powered Car Technology Attractive to Many (Youtube video) (Television newscast). Louisville, KY: Wave 3 News. Retrieved 2006-06-30.
  20. Flack, Eric (July 12, 2006). "Big Names Interested in Water Powered Car". Louisville, KY: Wave 3 News. Retrieved 2007-03-01.
  21. Flack, Eric (September 6, 2006). "Car Powered By Water A Reality". Louisville, KY: Wave 3 News. Retrieved 2007-03-01.
  22. Strom, Ron (2006-05-20). "Cars run on water: Miracle or scam?". WorldNetDaily. Retrieved 2007-06-07. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
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