Results So Far and Upcoming Changes
Nothing. I’ll be honest, but as I said, Matt is seeing a 30% increase on his Toyota, in Italy he saw a 25% increase. We are shipping several of these systems to South America because of positive results they have been getting, with a cab fleet possibly ordering to equip all their vehicles. We have a Roto Rooter fleet of trucks (using one of our wet cell systems) that reported seeing an increase from 5 MPG to 7 MPG, and I talked with another Mustang owner at the HHO Games that installed a system in his early 90s Mustang and saw improved MPG, so it’s only a matter of time before I see a gain as well.
But through the trial and error, I’ve pointed out several improvements that could be done and we’ve been adjusting for, so these systems are getting better.
First off, the manufacturer has redesigned their PWM and the LCD display. The model I have had the Frequency and Duty adjustment knobs built into the PWM, which isn’t the most convenient when mounted in the engine compartment, like I have mine, and then try to watch the readout on the LCD panel at the same time while adjusting. The new system has one knob with multiple adjustments built into the the LCD display mounted inside the car. This makes it much easier to tune the PWM, plus the readout gives better feedback, such as amp output to the cells, versus simply a Duty readout. Also the unit now has a “straight current” design. If you recall, I mentioned that my Frequency was bouncing all over and a little fluctuation in the Duty. The new one provides a steady current to the cells. As fluctuations occur within the electrical system, it compensates so now what you set, it what you keep, a “steady current” to the fuel cells. This will make the hydrogen production much more reliable.
Another thing we are trying is adding an additional reservoir to help filter the hydrogen before it goes into the engine. This isn’t a new idea, and was believed to not be needed, since primarily adding a “Scrubber” is to help filter out the catalyst being used for the electrolysis process. Using Potassium Carbonate in this system is far less dangerous than what some of the other systems use. But one issue I was having in the hot Florida heat and engine compartment is the moisture of the water and in the gas actually being pulled through the tube to the intake. While the amount isn’t much, and the flash suppresser seems to be filtering it, I still was concerned. Adding this extra reservoir tank and running the hydrogen through this water first, which will also act as an overflow from the main supply, it will help to reduce this amount of moisture that may still be within the hydrogen gas. This second container will also act as the flash suppressor, removing the current one, and any flash that may occur will stop here and not back into the cells. I’m still thinking of adding a one way check valve which would act as an additional suppressor where my current one is. These aren’t as reliable as the current suppressor, but between that and the second tank, you basically will have doubled the safety. In addition, using this second tank, and it acting as an overflow, you can now fill the first tank up nearly full, providing less upkeep and checking needed when it comes to adding more distilled water.
Most of these are enhancements to make the system better, which both of us like. As with any product, if you can figure a way to improve upon it and make it a better “mousetrap,” then why not? This industry continues to grow, design new systems, and improve upon current ones, based on new developments and customer feedback. We’ve heard of a few new concepts being worked on that sound exciting. If you purchase a system and have suggestions, please let us know. You would be helping everyone.
That’s the basics for the moment, I’ll keep you updated. I hope to have the new PWM and display installed in a week or so. The new display, because of the controller being built in, is larger and will no longer fit in my stereo DIN opening. I’m looking for different options, including maybe removing the display and adjustment knob from the box and remotely mounting them so I can still use this opening. Matt mounted his under his dashboard, which seems to look good in his Toyota truck, but with the more ergonomic flowing design within my Mustang, this won’t work as well. I’m picky, I want it to look stock. Watch for more updates.
