Photo: baidu / SCMP.com
A Chinese firm is boasting of a major accomplishment in terms of creating a sustainable alternative to gasoline-powered vehicles: a car that runs solely on water and that can reach ranges of up to 500 kilometers.
Interest in hydrogen-powered vehicles is not new, as neither are claims of successful prototypes, many of which have already been proven false. So no wonder the latest set of claims is raising eyebrows over in China, as they do not come with any type of evidence to back them up.
Qingnian Cars from Nanyang, a city in Henan province, claims to have created a successful hydrogen-powered prototype, which took its maiden voyage last week, during a visit of the Communist Party to the factor, South China Morning Post informs, citing reports in the local media.
Officials from the company are quoted as saying that the prototype’s first ride was a success, laying the grounds for mass-production. However, no evidence of the first trip or in-house testing has been released to the public.
“The cost [of research and development] is a trade secret that I cannot reveal,” Pang Qingnian, chief executive of the company, is cited as saying. “We achieved this at a low cost, this is our company’s technology.”
He claims the car would be able to travel between 300 and 500 kilometers on 300-400 liters of water. The chemical reaction of water and aluminum powder creates hydrogen, which powers the car. The costs are then further reduced as the company plans to reuse all the reactants used in the process.
“The water that we are using is ours, we don’t have to go to the Middle East to buy [gasoline]. Water is not polluting either,” Pang adds.
As of the time of writing, an official from Nanyang Bureau of Industry and Information Technology has confirmed the existence of the hydrogen-powered prototype but would not disclose more details about it, let alone mention this historic first trip it supposedly made last week.
Qingnian Cars from Nanyang, a city in Henan province, claims to have created a successful hydrogen-powered prototype, which took its maiden voyage last week, during a visit of the Communist Party to the factor, South China Morning Post informs, citing reports in the local media.
Officials from the company are quoted as saying that the prototype’s first ride was a success, laying the grounds for mass-production. However, no evidence of the first trip or in-house testing has been released to the public.
“The cost [of research and development] is a trade secret that I cannot reveal,” Pang Qingnian, chief executive of the company, is cited as saying. “We achieved this at a low cost, this is our company’s technology.”
He claims the car would be able to travel between 300 and 500 kilometers on 300-400 liters of water. The chemical reaction of water and aluminum powder creates hydrogen, which powers the car. The costs are then further reduced as the company plans to reuse all the reactants used in the process.
“The water that we are using is ours, we don’t have to go to the Middle East to buy [gasoline]. Water is not polluting either,” Pang adds.
As of the time of writing, an official from Nanyang Bureau of Industry and Information Technology has confirmed the existence of the hydrogen-powered prototype but would not disclose more details about it, let alone mention this historic first trip it supposedly made last week.
Google News