Introduction to Hydrogen Energy

As climate change continues to worsen, people are taking notice, and scientists are searching for ways to address it.  While most are familiar with solar, wind, and geothermal energy, hydrogen energy is not that common.  Hydrogen is one of the most abundant and powerful fuels yet it has not received as much attention as other energy carriers. 

The Wolf Press interviewed Dr. Joan Ogden, Professor of Environmental Science and Policy and Director of the Sustainable Transportation Energy Pathway Program at the UC Davis’ Institute of Transportation Studies about hydrogen energy.  When asked about the leading company in hydrogen energy, Dr. Ogden stated that “There are a number of companies developing electrolyzers, which are devices that split water into hydrogen and oxygen and use hydrogen for energy.  These companies are located all over the world, including China, Japan, and Europe.  The push now is to reduce the cost of electrolysis and make the cells more efficient cand longer-lasting.”

Dr. Ogden also explained, “Interest in hydrogen has come in waves, with the first wave in the 1970s and another wave more recently, as people have become more aware of the environmental impacts of fossil fuels and have seen hydrogen as a possible alternative energy carrier.” 

“Hydrogen hubs are regions where hydrogen energy is being introduced for various uses. The term came about because the US government recently allocated $8 billion for the development of hydrogen energy clusters.  These hubs are regional clusters, such as the Los Angeles area and surrounding southern California, which can receive up to $1 billion each for this purpose,” Dr. Ogden added that these hubs serve as  zero-emission energy carriers. 

MS447 student and aspiring scientist James Benchimol, also interested in hydrogen energy, states that “ The only other thing that I would see is lithium batteries, but I can't really see that at all because of everything that we've already developed other than hydrogen.  There is a problem with all others, for example, lithium batteries; they take lithium, and mining lithium is not the most environmentally conscious practice. On one hand, people might be scared of giant explosions because hydrogen is most definitely explosive, but I think there are some people who will also acknowledge that lithium isn't much better in terms of flammability.” 

     Dr. Ogden and James Benchimol both believe that if the car industry can change our cars, we can change the world.