Hydrogen

What is hydrogen?

Hydrogen is the lightest gas on the periodic table of elements. It is also the most abundant element in the universe.

How can hydrogen be used as an energy source?

Hydrogen isn't really an energy source, instead it is more a way to store energy. This is because of the way hydrogen is made and the way it is converted into energy.

Seeing that hydrogen isn't found naturally anywhere on Earth, it needs to be produced in some different way. One of the most interesting ways is the electrolyzation of water. Here hydrogen is produced by passing electricity through water, splitting it into its separate components, hydrogen and oxygen. As you can see, electrical energy is needed to produce hydrogen which makes it an energy storage instead of an energy producer. In order to get the energy out of the hydrogen, it needs to react with oxygen to make water again. During this reaction electrical energy and heat is produced, both of which are then collected to be used.

The Pros

Hydrogen gas as an energy storage doesn't produce any climate gasses. The only two things that are ever emitted as a byproduct are oxygen and water, which is in no way harmfull to the environment.
Another upside to hydrogen is that it is a gas similar to the ones we already use. This means that most of the pipelines don't need to be replaced.
Hydrogen is also quite safe compered to the standard gasses used today. Hydrogen is a non-toxic gas so breathing it in isn't as dangerous as breathing in the gasses we use now. Besides this, hydrogen is also extremely light. This makes it so that, if it is light, the flame points straight upwards, making it less likely to burn the things around it.

The Cons

One of the main downsides to hydrogen gas is the fact that, although the pipes can stay the same, all the burners need to change to ones that can get electrical energy out of the hydrogen.
Another downside is the same as with regular gas: it's explosive. This means that certain safety precaution need to be kept in mind when handling the gas.
A big downside to hydrogen as an energy storage is the fact that it really isn't all that efficient. Only about 30% of the energy that goes is, can be used again later. When you compare this to the around 80% efficiency of a lithium-ion battery, it is a bit lacking.

Conclusion and Recommendation

To conclude, hydrogen is not a proper way of producing energy. Instead it is a way to store the energy that is produced by other means such as wind and/or solar power. Thus it is recommended that development and implementation of hydrogen gas would be accompanied by development and implementation of renewable energy sources.

Implementation

Hydrogen gas can be implemented everywhere in society:

It can be used to power our cars.
- Hydrogen cars are already out on the roads today, however there are still a lot of improvents to be made. Currently there are way to little gas stations to fuel the hydrogen cars making it difficult to use in day to day life. Besides this, production of the hydrogen cars is also still too expensive. Improvements need to be made to make the production more efficient so that the costs go down
It can be used to power our homes.
- Researchers at the Technical University of Delft are working on cars that can be used not only to transport people, but also to power our houses. They do this by using the engine of the car, which takes hydrogen and makes electricity, to power houses. They even went as far as to use a scooter to power an entire house.
It can be used to replace natural gas.
- Hydrogen is a gas akin to the ones we already use today. Although the way you get energy out of it is different, it can still be used in similar ways and with the same pipes and storage facilities. This makes it a great replacement for the natural gas we use nowadays.

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