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[–] [deleted] 7 pts

I've worked in electronic mfg for a good deal of my life and ammonia disolves copper so any copper in sensors and shit will be gone very soon and strong ammonia smell like a diaper facility with piss filled diapers so it's a no go and any copper allows will be severely weakened so I call bullshit. Also copper leaves crystals behind when etched so any filters will be clogged with it faster than fuck. Also it can chock you out by displacing the air in your lungs since it's heavier and it evaporate at room temperature so unless the tank is totally sealed it will empty into the air when the gas cover is opened.

[–] 3 pts

Good comment. I suck at chemistry.

That said, I expect most if not all of those are addressable. For example, those types of changes would be part of a conversion kit. Which he estimated at around $1k per vehicle. Similar challenges with ethanol. Which is why car parts were updated for compatibility and not allowed in most aircraft.

[–] 3 pts

Followed by Canadian jailed for violating COVID rules

[–] 2 pts (edited )

advanced new fuel technology

Nope, it's not new at all.

Even though at the moment there is no transport fleet operating with ammonia as fuel, the use of ammonia as an alternative to fossil fuels for transportation vehicles was considered during the twentieth century. The first well-known example is the case of the bus fleet operated in Belgium during World War II due to the limited availability of diesel fuel (Koch, 1949). The first dual-fuel engine was invented: coal gas, composed of 50% H2, was directly injected into the combustion chamber filled with ammonia. In the mid-60s, several studies (Cornelius et al., 1965; Garabedian and Johnson, 1965; Gray et al., 1966; Starkman et al., 1966, 1967; Pearsall and Garabedian, 1967; Sawyer et al., 1968) focused on the possibility of using ammonia as fuel in thermal engines, first providing recommendations about the compatibility of ammonia with engineering materials and lubricants, due to its corrosiveness to copper, copper alloys, nickel, and even some plastics.

However, its combustion characteristics (high minimum ignition energy and auto-ignition temperature, low combustion speed in comparison to usual hydrocarbon fuels) are drawbacks that have so far limited its use.

consensus prevails about the technical challenges that an ammonia engine must overcome. The Caterpillar Corporation put it succinctly in their 2008 patent application that covers a “power system having an ammonia-fueled engine”: “When ammonia is combusted, the combustion produces a flame with a relatively low propagation speed . . . This low combustion rate of ammonia causes combustion to be inconsistent under low engine load and/or high engine speed operating conditions. Most existing combustion engines that use ammonia as engine fuel typically require a combustion promoter (i.e., a second fuel such as gasoline, hydrogen, diesel, etc.) for ignition, operation at low engine loads and/or high engine speed.”

[–] 1 pt

They shot the guy who built the water car and stole his patents.

That's all you need to know about patents.

There is no free lunch when it comes to energy. According to Wikipedia the energy content of ammonia per liter is a third of that of disel. Even if we take his numbers at face value, we'd multiply the 25 cents per liter by 3. And we get a number about half of the price of gas. How much of that is taxes? You're not saving anything.

[–] 0 pt

I've consistently found it's about half the energy density. But I am parroting. Still, you make a fine point. It's crazy just how must of the gas price is actually taxes.

And consider this, on industrial scale ammonia is made by combining H2 and N2. Here is how H2 is made:

There are four main sources for the commercial production of hydrogen: natural gas, oil, coal, and electrolysis; which account for 48%, 30%, 18% and 4% of the world's hydrogen production respectively.[6] Fossil fuels are the dominant source of industrial hydrogen.

So, all but 4% of H2 is made from fossil fuels, with the bulk of it made from oil and natural gas. Running cars on ammonia is like running cars on gasoline with extra steps, and probably with a lot more issues.

You're not going to get cheaper fuel for cars by using ammonia.

[–] 1 pt

This guy also has his own ammonia production method. Which is what he's basing his price on. I have no idea how it compares. He believes it is favorable.