FUEL CELL S10 PICK UP TRUCK

Chevrolet S-10 pickup truck extracts hydrogen from gasoline to produce electricity. The S10 pickup is equipped with a fuel processor that reforms low-sulfur gasoline onboard.

"This vehicle and the reforming technology in it move us closer to a hydrogen economy," said GM research, development and planning vice president Larry Burns. "This is a drivable lab that is helping us to learn to reform fuels for fuel cells to power cars, homes and businesses."

GM said the processor functions by mixing low-sulfur gasoline with air and water, which is then passed over a series of catalysts that "break apart" the hydrogen from the carbon. The resulting stream of hydrogen is sent to the fuel cell stack, where it is combined with oxygen from the air to produce electricity.

GM said the reformer technology, when linked with a fuel cell stack, could achieve up to 40 percent overall energy efficiency and 40 miles per gallon. Additionally, carbon dioxide emissions could be reduced by up to 50 percent if the gasoline was reformed onboard and "greatly" reduced if the reformer was placed at a gasoline station.

"You can reform gasoline onboard or at the gas station to produce hydrogen or you can create it at your home or business," said GM
"Gasoline is an efficient way to distribute hydrogen, whether the reformer is on the vehicle or in the pump."

GM is putting rhew fuel cell S10 pickup through "vigorous" testing during the next year to better determine range, efficiency, emissions and fuel-reforming characteristics.