It’s a popular talking point of hydrogen vehicles that the only thing coming out of the tailpipe is water. But what should one do with that water? Audi suggests drinking it, according to a new patent application.
Yes, Audi’s Kraftfahrzeug mit einer Vorrichtung zur Zubereitung eines Getränks patent— that’s “motor vehicle with a device for preparing a drink,” roughly translated—aims to turn your Audi h-tron into a kettle.
That’s because the water coming out of the fuel cell, according to the patent, is roughly 70 to 90 degrees celsius, anyway (roughly 158-194 f, or just shy of boiling). So, the water could be held in a reservoir, taking advantage of this ambient heat to prepare drinks.
Audi suggests that the car could even be fitted with its own coffee, tea, and cocoa mixes. That’s right, your next Audi could be called the A7 Nespresso.
If you’re a little uneasy about drinking a car’s waste products, you’re not totally off-base (but it should probably be alright). Speaking to Automotive News in 2014, Toyota said that the water coming out of its fuel cells was safer to drink than milk, but they also advised against drinking it.
“Depending on the place you are driving, some parts of the world might have certain issues, such as organisms like E. coli, which could be hazardous to your health,” Seiji Mizuno, one of Toyota’s fuel cell designers told Automotive News. “You never know what the quality of the air intake is.”
Contained within the application are contingencies for purification, refrigeration, and mineral addition, so the water could potentially be rid of all those dangerous impurities.
And although it might feel a little bit like you’re drinking your car’s pee, it is a better solution than just dumping it on the road. I’d much rather own a car that doubles as an espresso machine than one that doubles as a black ice machine.
shared from Fourtitude
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