TOYOTA DEVELOPED A LIQUID HYDROGEN COMBUSTION ENGINE

EV Channels Review

This video delves into Toyota's innovative development of a liquid hydrogen combustion engine, showcased in the Fuji 24-hour race. While acknowledging Toyota's engineering prowess and the potential for carbon-free racing, the review highlights significant challenges. The primary issues identified are the extreme difficulty in maintaining the fuel pump's integrity at cryogenic temperatures and the inherent volumetric inefficiency of hydrogen storage, even in liquid form, compared to gasoline. The reviewer points out that despite advancements in storage density, the energy density by volume remains a major hurdle, necessitating impractically large tanks for reasonable range. Furthermore, the fuel pump's unreliability, requiring multiple replacements during the race, and the resulting power reduction due to lower injection pressure, significantly impacted performance. The video concludes that while Toyota's effort is commendable, the practical limitations, particularly the boil-off issue and the need for specialized, large tanks, make liquid hydrogen combustion unviable for widespread passenger car adoption. Synthetic fuel is presented as a more practical, albeit costly, alternative.