Thanks to This Breakthrough, Cars Could Be 'Running on Tap Water' Within 5 Years

Fuelling a car with water instead of gas might seem like a futuristic concept, but a recent breakthrough could make it a reality.

A team of scientists have figured out a way to make cars run on water instead of gasoline. It might sound like something out of a movie, but it's true! This breakthrough comes from researchers at the Illinois Institute of Technology and Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

So, how does it work? Well, they've created a "tri-metallic catalyst" that can split water into two parts: hydrogen and oxygen. This catalyst is made from common metals like nickel, cobalt, and iron, which are much cheaper than the ones used in traditional methods. Plus, it lasts a lot longer, up to 600 hours! 

With this breakthrough, fuel cell vehicles could be refueled with water, eliminating the need for large, high-pressure hydrogen tanks. The best part is that the catalyst can perform both hydrogen and oxygen production functions, so it's more efficient and cheaper to use. 

Right now, traditional cars that run on hydrogen fuel cells already exist, such as the Honda Clarity, Hyundai Nexo and Toyota Mirai. However these cars face challenges related to the limited refuelling infrastructure and high hydrogen costs. With this new catalyst, you could just fill up your car with water from your tap at home. Which would remove the need for fancy hydrogen stations!

The scientists think this could change the way we power cars in the future. They're hopeful that in about five years, we could see cars on the road that run on water. The transition would still require substantial support and further development before these vehicles hit the road. But considering the recent advances that we have made with electrical vehicles, this next step in vehicular technology could be just around the corner. 

The major advantage of having your own hydrogen machine would be that no infrastructure is needed for hydrogen cars and storing hydrogen, unlike EV's which require a substantial network of electrical charging points. The water network already exists so it would be very easy to roll out this across the country and worldwide. 

Despite the initial expenses of developing this technology, if the researches find a cheap way to convert water into hydrogen, you could do it at home. Refuelling your car in the driveway with your own hydrogen would cost less than washing the dishes at home. The main issue with this technology is that you will still need energy to run the catalyst and separate the hydrogen and oxygen. So the question still remains: wouldn't it be better to just charge the car with that energy?