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September 2005
Sunday, September 4, 2005
8:45:00 AM EDT
The Hydrogen Economy, What Is It?
by Dave Cohen
There are some who neither understand nor believe that we cannot continue to maintain our industrial economy in the foreseeable future unless we find a suitable substitute for fossil fuel. Energy derived from burning fossil fuel currently supplies 70% of our electricity and 99% of our transportation capability.
What is fossil fuel? Simply stated, it is coal, natural gas, and petroleum all taken from the ground. Fossil fuel has given us the industrial revolution for the last 2 centuries. Energy taken from these fuels has provided us with food, manufactured goods, transportation, lighting, entertainment, and communication. Without fossil fuel or a suitable substitute, there will be no industrial economy. We would be forced back into an agrarian economy which described the whole world at the time of initiation of American independence.
The world at that time used wooden sailing ships made by hand, horse drawn overland travel, hand grown or raised agricultural products, primitive medical delivery and almost no communication capability except by hand carried and delivered messages.
The truth is that our fossil fuel resources will be disappearing at some point in this century and the next. Many of us have now seen the Chevron ad that states: “It took us 120 years to use the first trillion barrels of oil. We’ll use the next trillion in 30.” This ad is not a joke. It is true and requires remediation. If we were to instantaneously double our fuel consumption efficiency at this moment, the best we could do is add 30 years to our end game. In fact, we would be lucky to get a decade out of it because of increased population and demand.
What is desperately needed is a substitute for fossil fuel. Without a replacement, we will be forced into an economic catastrophe. Our ability to grow and deliver food, obtain water, deliver military readiness, transportation, medical services and communication will all be at serious risk.
One course of action is to construct what has often been called a hydrogen economy. Hydrogen is an ideal fuel, but is not a primary source of energy. It is locked up as a component of water. However, when released from water with a separate energy source, it is a perfect energy carrier that can be shipped anywhere just like we now do with petroleum or natural gas.
Hydrogen then will be a manufactured product. Its manufacturing components are water and electrical energy. Wateris not in short supply. Neither are energy sources in short supply, but the conversion of energy to electricity requires the construction of power plants that use only infinitely renewable forms of energy and no fossil fuel. What is a renewable energy source? There are many types. The most common type is hydroelectric from dammed rivers. The second most common types are currently geothermal and wind turbine energy sources which are technologically well developed, but underutilized. Then there are solar energy systems and potentially wave and tidal systems which are in a lesser state of development. We must not overlook breeder type nuclear reactor powered systems as a possible energy source. The electricity generated from these systems can be used to produce hydrogen 24 hours per day and 7 days per week.
Currently the US consumes 19 million barrels of petroleum per day. That can be completely replaced by 800,000 metric tons of hydrogen per day produced by 2 trillion watts of renewable energy sourced power facilities and 10 million cubic meters of water daily. That hydrogen can power all of our transportation systems with the exception of aircraft. Automobiles, trucks, buses, trains, ships, agricultural, and earth moving systems, fuel cells, and internal combustion engines can all be fueled with hydrogen. Hydrogen can also be used as a feed stock in the manufacture of synthetic aircraft fuel.
Some people advocate rechargeable battery technology in place of hydrogen. This idea has little practical merit. Battery technology is still primitive. The existing grid does not have the capacity to recharge our huge automotive fleet. Low power density, short discharge time, and insufficient production material availability combine to make this a very poor idea. The biggest advantage to hydrogen is its simplicity, scalability, and the almost infinite availability of water and energy. The cost is already known. Hydrogen can be manufactured for as little as $5 per equivalent gallon of gasoline at today's electrical energy rates. Using efficient fuel cell engines, the cost per driven mile will be equal to or less than today's cost per mile of road travel.
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8:45:00 AM EDT
Hydrogen Economy
The Hydrogen Economy, What Is It?
by Dave Cohen
There are some who neither understand nor believe that we cannot continue to maintain our industrial economy in the foreseeable future unless we find a suitable substitute for fossil fuel. Energy derived from burning fossil fuel currently supplies 70% of our electricity and 99% of our transportation capability.
What is fossil fuel? Simply stated, it is coal, natural gas, and petroleum all taken from the ground. Fossil fuel has given us the industrial revolution for the last 2 centuries. Energy taken from these fuels has provided us with food, manufactured goods, transportation, lighting, entertainment, and communication. Without fossil fuel or a suitable substitute, there will be no industrial economy. We would be forced back into an agrarian economy which described the whole world at the time of initiation of American independence.
The world at that time used wooden sailing ships made by hand, horse drawn overland travel, hand grown or raised agricultural products, primitive medical delivery and almost no communication capability except by hand carried and delivered messages.
The truth is that our fossil fuel resources will be disappearing at some point in this century and the next. Many of us have now seen the Chevron ad that states: “It took us 120 years to use the first trillion barrels of oil. We’ll use the next trillion in 30.” This ad is not a joke. It is true and requires remediation. If we were to instantaneously double our fuel consumption efficiency at this moment, the best we could do is add 30 years to our end game. In fact, we would be lucky to get a decade out of it because of increased population and demand.
What is desperately needed is a substitute for fossil fuel. Without a replacement, we will be forced into an economic catastrophe. Our ability to grow and deliver food, obtain water, deliver military readiness, transportation, medical services and communication will all be at serious risk.
One course of action is to construct what has often been called a hydrogen economy. Hydrogen is an ideal fuel, but is not a primary source of energy. It is locked up as a component of water. However, when released from water with a separate energy source, it is a perfect energy carrier that can be shipped anywhere just like we now do with petroleum or natural gas.
Hydrogen then will be a manufactured product. Its manufacturing components are water and electrical energy. Wateris not in short supply. Neither are energy sources in short supply, but the conversion of energy to electricity requires the construction of power plants that use only infinitely renewable forms of energy and no fossil fuel. What is a renewable energy source? There are many types. The most common type is hydroelectric from dammed rivers. The second most common types are currently geothermal and wind turbine energy sources which are technologically well developed, but underutilized. Then there are solar energy systems and potentially wave and tidal systems which are in a lesser state of development. We must not overlook breeder type nuclear reactor powered systems as a possible energy source. The electricity generated from these systems can be used to produce hydrogen 24 hours per day and 7 days per week.
Currently the US consumes 19 million barrels of petroleum per day. That can be completely replaced by 800,000 metric tons of hydrogen per day produced by 2 trillion watts of renewable energy sourced power facilities and 10 million cubic meters of water daily. That hydrogen can power all of our transportation systems with the exception of aircraft. Automobiles, trucks, buses, trains, ships, agricultural, and earth moving systems, fuel cells, and internal combustion engines can all be fueled with hydrogen. Hydrogen can also be used as a feed stock in the manufacture of synthetic aircraft fuel.
Some people advocate rechargeable battery technology in place of hydrogen. This idea has little practical merit. Battery technology is still primitive. The existing grid does not have the capacity to recharge our huge automotive fleet. Low power density, short discharge time, and insufficient production material availability combine to make this a very poor idea. The biggest advantage to hydrogen is its simplicity, scalability, and the almost infinite availability of water and energy. The cost is already known. Hydrogen can be manufactured for as little as $5 per equivalent gallon of gasoline at today's electrical energy rates. Using efficient fuel cell engines, the cost per driven mile will be equal to or less than today's cost per mile of road travel.
Written by jdc2485 Blog about this entry |
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