Hydroxy System for Diesel Vehicles – Solving Emission Contaminations

Reviewed by Robert L Pritchett

H2O Hybrid Pro

1441 Walla Walla Ave

Walla Walla, WA 99362

Phone: (509) 529-7905

Mobile: (509)-540-5764

h2ohybridpro@charter.net

http://www.h2ohybridpro.com/

Released: April 2009

$1,500 USD

Requirements: Diesel engine and a desire to reduce fuel consumption.

Strengths: Improves fuel mileage, provides more power to the engine, reduces emissions.

Weaknesses: Strong perceived bias against the technology. Requires a heavy-duty alternator with this configuration.

Introduction

I started out as a skeptic and became a believer in this technology. But it has been a long, expensive road to get here, from where I began about a year ago. There have been fits and starts. Now I am a dealer for the technology.

This link is a diary of sorts, as I learned by doing over time through the technology. The latest rendition is called a "Dry Cell". Earlier versions were "Wet Cells", meaning they had metal plates suspended in distilled water and with an electrolysis solution of some kind – usually a hydride - and they used a "brute force" method of electric transfer through the water to the plates to generate hydrogen and oxygen, that would then flow to the air intake into the engine and help consume the hydrocarbons more efficiently. This process increased power to the engine and reduced emissions from the exhaust.

I first met Gary Hall at the Alternative Energy Expo in Pasco WA. I then had him do a presentation to our Alternative Energy User Group in Richland WA. We've gone through around 4 different renditions of these hydroxy systems, as we learned what not to do and what we could do to improve the systems, following the KISS principle.

The wet cells required changing out the water every two weeks, due to cadmium buildup and plate oxidation. The positive plates that produce oxygen, tend to sacrifice themselves through oxidation. The units also waste/generate a lot of heat.

And we learned that baking soda was not a good chemical to use, due to its side effects when using tap water instead of distilled water and it tended to cause crud buildup more quickly than other options.

We looked at the different chemicals and finally settled on potassium hydroxide and learned how to handle it correctly as well. Kind of like the 3 bears story, baking soda was too weak, sodium hydroxide too strong, but potassium hydroxide was just right.

What I Learned

I published an unedited video of a Bob Boyce interview.

I wished I had heard him speak earlier and I consider him one of the still living "fathers" of the new hydroxy systems. The first hydroxy systems were created way back in the early 1800's. Yes, that long ago. Nevertheless, we learned that successfully doing hydroxy with gasoline engines was much more of a challenge than doing this with diesels. Doing it with diesels "required" less electronics. We were not required to jump through as many sensor hoops in the engines as the onboard computers and electronics got more and more sophisticated with gasoline-based vehicles.

What clinched that decision for me, was a presentation done to our Alternative Energy User Group in January 2009 by Sean Totten, automotive instructor at Columbia Basin Community College (CBC). We weren't just fighting a couple of oxygen sensors, we were also dealing with getting around 17 or more sensors. Shade-tree mechanics beware! I recently showed him the Dry Cell in the diesel van and even he was impressed. As expected, he had ideas to improve the process even more with electronics.

I still believe in the KISS principle, however. The van runs on a 2001, 7.3 liter, PowerStroke engine that did not come with an innercooler. It did come with a turbobooster though.

With the hydroxy system running, the engine cools down, runs quieter, has more power and doesn’t blow smoke out the back when gunning the accelerator.

I like things that don’t pollute. If we can get all the diesels to not be spreading particulates into the air, we are doing good. If we can combine that with more power and efficiency, that is better.

I have noticed that recent activities are more expensive filtration systems on the exhaust for trucks and more emissions controls. The hydroxy systems address the real problem, instead of addressing the symptoms.

We get a better burn, when hydrogen is added to the air intake. Instead of only a 20% efficiency, we get closer to 50%, when using hydroxy to burn the hydrocarbons.

Recent emissions test we did in Spokane, WA gave us 4%. Passing was over 40%. Then I took the van to CBC and ran it through gas emissions tests. NOX was not zero, but then again, the antiquated system was designed for gas engines and not diesels. We were told that if we could get the probe to go in front of the catalytic converter instead of behind it, the readings would be truer and I was cautioned not to publish the results. So I won't. Meanwhile, the diesel technology program at the college could use a new spectrum analyzer. They sure could use some of that stimulus funding…

What I can say is, I'm not going to drink water from the tailpipe anytime soon, ok? The results are not "zero emissions", just fairly close. At least I'm sure the current hydroxy system works and works much better than the earlier systems did.

This is a picture of the demo unit we used in the van to drive up to Spokane. It was really "too powerful" for the engine. The existing installed system has fewer plates and uses less watts than the demo unit shown here. That is a good thing.

Conclusion

Picture school buses and mass transits going down the street with their constant starts and stops, without putting black clouds of acrid smoke into the air.
Picture a quiet diesel driving by and not smelling like a diesel.
Picture the cost of diesel being less than the cost for gasoline.
Picture dry cell hydroxy systems in all diesels. Simple technology. Innovative retrofits.
Reduced costs and improved performance.

Oh, and when a vehicle has been converted to an alternative energy vehicle in the US, the cost of the installation is a complete tax credit. THAT is win-win!

See also