Hydrogen Fuel Comes to Florida Chevron

ALEXANDRIA, Va. -- A Chevron station near the Orlando airport has taken the first step to marketing hydrogen fuels by implementing H2Gen Innovations' system that produces hydrogen from natural gas, The New York Times reported.

The company's hydrogen converter uses methane, a natural gas component, to convert clean-burning hydrogen fuel through a steam refinery process. Methane is exposed to steam, which produces hydrogen and carbon monoxide molecules. Then, carbon monoxide is combined with water, removing an oxygen atom from the water molecule, resulting in more hydrogen. Lastly, the oxygen atom combines with the carbon monoxide molecule to become carbon dioxide, reported the Times.

The process converts 70 percent of the available energy from the natural gas, the report stated. Using hydrogen fuel cell technology, the net greenhouse gas emissions per mile driven are lower than the traditional oil-refinery-gasoline produced fuel, H2Gen Innovations said.

The system -- which has been bought primarily by industrial users -- provides enough fuel for local refueling stations at a community level, which is about a few dozen cars, the report stated. The Chevron station will supply hydrogen to fuel-cell buses that operate near Orlando.

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