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.
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.
People don't consider the costs when producing something like that.
You can get hydrogen from electrolysis and nitrogen from the air. However, you need to buy the equipment, run it, maintain it, and have a place where you store it. None of that is free. I suppose your labor is free if you don't value your free time at all.
I can see doing it as a hobby, but to save money? Perhaps if you don't have a job, want to keep your costs down, and live off the grid, it's an option. I've seen videos where people generate a decent amount of electricity from a creek, and to be able to get fuel from that is kinda neat.
You might be interested in watching the video. He has a machine he is patenting which creates ammonia. I believe his intention is to sell the machines. Which means you would be off grid for "gas." Of course, I'm clueless about the input side of things. And he didn't expand on it.
Regardless, been some interesting commentary on this topic. Thanks for contributing.
A gallon of ammonia at the store cost me $2.29. If 1/3rd the efficiency of gasoline, then that would be $6.87 for the same distance as 1 gallon of gasoline. I would also have to refuel 3 times as much as I would with gasoline.
He may say he can produce ammonia for 25 cents per liter, but it appears that he is not undercutting his competitors by selling it in the store for that price.
Doing the math:
$0.25/l = ~$1/G. At 1/2 energy density, which is the standard, not 1/3, that's equiv to $2/G for fuel for the same work.
At $2/G, without a container, and without distribution, that actually appears on par with the commercial offering of $2.29/G retail. So ya, I do agree it doesn't seem like a great deal. Especially since you could likely obtain a bulk discount price if you were consuming 50G to 100G per month of it. I'd bet it would be cheaper than $2/G in bulk.
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