British scientists have invented a non-oil based substitute for petrol that will change the world.  Vehicles should be able to run on the new hydrogen based fuel without any modifications to their engines, plus the fuel can be produced much cheaper than it’s oil-based counterpart.

Professor Stephen Bennington, the lead scientist at Rutherford Appleton Laboratory in Oxford, England, said “In some senses, hydrogen is the perfect fuel, it has three times more energy than petrol per unit of weight, and when it burns it produces nothing but water.”   He added “Our new hydrogen storage materials offer real potential for running cars, planes and other vehicles that currently use hydrocarbons.”

The team of scientists have develop a method to store the hydrogen, making it into tiny beads, enabling it to be poured like a liquid.  A tankful of the hydrogen fuel is on par with the performance of ordinary petrol, lasting for 300 to 400 miles.  Yet to be given a brand name, and being developed by Cellar Energy, the fuel is expected to reach the forecourts in about 3 years time.

It looks like it could be the end for world dependency of oil-based fuel and it will be interesting to see how this develops, both in technology terms and politically.