How HHO Works to Boost Gas Mileage

The extra power and mileage produced by adding HHO gas into the combustion mixture of your car's engine is a result of two different things. First and most obvious, you are adding an additional fuel source. But the hydroxy gas also acts as a catalyst. It helps to break down the heavier and larger gasoline molecules many of which are normally passed through unburned into the exhaust system, into smaller, more readily combustible molecules.

A portion of every gallon of gas you buy and put into your tank is simply wasted--passing unburned through your engine and being burned in the catalytic converter where it is converted to heat and lost out the tailpipe unused. This is where an HHO system comes in. By adding HHO into your car's combustion chamber and using more of the gasoline you already have there, efficiency increases and emissions decrease. Furthermore, the engine will require less gasoline because of the addition of another fuel source, thus increasing efficiency more. The combination of these two factors is how HHO increases gas mileage. How much mileage increase is obtained depends on how much extra fuel (HHO) is added, and how much less gasoline can be used for each combustion.

How is HHO Gas Made?

HHO or hydroxy gas is commonly produced by a process called electrolysis. For those who want to see some various ways to make hydrogen and do some experiments before building or purchasing a hydrogen generator for use in a car, go to this excellent site.

How is HHO Gas Produced in a Car?

The process is pretty simple, really. The HHO gas is actually produced in the electrolyzer--the heart of the system (also called an HHO generator). This unit consists of at least two electrodes suspended in a bath of water or other liquid, and if water, most also use an added substance to make the water more conductive. This mixture, called an electrolyte, allows electric current supplied by the car's alternator to flow between the electrodes. As it does, the current breaks down the covalent bonds of the water molecule, causing the hydrogen and oxygen atoms to separate and bubble to the surface. They then recombine as gas above the surface of the water to form HHO, or hydroxy gas. This gas is then drawn through the system into the car's intake manifold by the pull of the engine vacuum.

To see a diagram of a typical HHO system with a description of the components, go to our HHO System Components page.



Return to 'Is This a Water Car' page