BBC: [2] A new material developed, by scientists could give a significant boost to a new generation of hydrogen-powered cars.
[3] Like a bath sponge, the product is able to hold and release large quantities of the gas at lower pressure and cost. [4] Made up of billions of tiny pores, a single gram of the new aluminium-based material has a surface area the size of a football pitch.
[5] The authors say it can store the large volume of gas needed for practical travel without needing expensive tanks. [6] In 2017, CO2 emissions from cars, trucks, airplanes and trains, overtook power plants as the largest source of US greenhouse gas emissions.
As well as developing electric vehicles, much focus has been on hydrogen as a zero emissions source of power for cars.
The gas is used to power a fuel cell in cars and trucks, and if it is made from renewable energy it is a much greener fuel.
However, hydrogen vehicles suffer from some drawbacks.
The gas is extremely light – In normal atmospheric pressure, to carry 1kg of hydrogen which might power your car for over 100km, you’d need a tank capable of holding around 11,000 litres.