Hydrogen (Terra Futura)

Hydrogen was the smallest element in the universe. It could be used as a power source for cars.

Background
Hydrogen was discovered in 1766 by British scientist Henry Cavendish. James Dewar, another British scientist, later created liquid hydrogen in 1898. During the early 20th century, hydrogen was used as fuel for zeppelins. Hydrogen was the lifting gas. In those days, airplanes were noisy, so airships were much more common. Then, in 1937, tragedy struck. The German airship, Hindenburg, burned up as it approached Lakehurst, New Jersey. Hydrogen would never be used as lifting gas again. However, hydrogen was very important in the development of quantum mechanics. And it would continue to be used as fuel.

Description
Tech Level: 10

Hydrogen had many uses. It could even be used as fuel in internal combustion engines. In Homogeneous Charge Compression Ignition (HCCI), no nitrogen oxides were produced. However, when using gasoline, there was a higher amount of carbon monoxide and hydrocarbons. Thus, hydrogen was the preferred fuel in HCCI vehicles. Hydrogen had a lot more specific energy than gasoline despite its lower energy density. But the most common use of hydrogen as fuel was in Fuel Cells.