Archives
October 2005
Sunday, October 9, 2005
1:14:00 PM EDT
OUR HYDROGEN FUTURE
by Dave Cohen
Hydrogen will eventually be the fuel of the future. It can replace all the fossil fuels (coal, petroleum, and natural gas) for heating, surface transportation and limited types of air transportation, as well as local power production. Its only significant combustion product will be clean, harmless water vapor which eventually drops back to the earth’s surface as rainfall. Most harmful pollutants such as smoke and carbon monoxide, toxic gas products that lead to smog and acid rain, and finally persistent greenhouse gases will disappear from the burning process entirely.
As long as there is carbon in the fuel we burn, carbon dioxide (CO2) is produced in the exhaust. Removing the CO2 gas from the exhaust stacks is a monumental task, and is neither mechanically nor economically practical.
The numbers are quite simple.
• Coal produces about 300 lbs. of CO2 per million BTUs of thermal energy consumed. Wood and charcoal are similar to coal.
• Fuel Oil and gasoline produce about 175 lbs. of CO2 per million BTUs of thermal energy consumed.
• Natural Gas produces about 130 lbs. of CO2 per million BTUs of thermal energy consumed.
• Hydrogen produces no CO2, few pollutants, and no waste.
A global switch to hydrogen can help eliminate health problems due to poor air quality. It will reduce or stop acid poisoning of our lakes. It will help slow the phenomenon of global warming. Lastly, it will forever end dependence on foreign crude oil supplies.
Construction of the infrastructure needed for our hydrogen based future will produce lifelong jobs for a huge portion of the world’s population.
Hydrogen is readily available. It comes from a renewable and inexhaustible source as a component of water (H2O). Obtaining it is relatively safe and easy. The most straightforward and environmentally friendly method of breaking water into its components of hydrogen and oxygen is by passing an electric current through the liquid. In other words, it requires a source of electrical energy.
Hydrogen cannot be a practical fuel, if fossil fuel feed stock is needed as a hydrogen source or if fossil fuel combustion is required to produce the electrical energy necessary to release the hydrogen. Therefore, the energy sources for future hydrogen production will have to come from clean, renewable energy resources. A common renewable source is from hydroelectric power generated from rivers with large dams. We do not have enough hydropower resources for large scale hydrogen production. Other fossil fuel free energy could possibly come from wind driven turbines, solar collectors, ocean wave or tidal sources. Even nuclear and some day possibly thermonuclear sources may be considered. All of these should be planned and implemented only when ecological, safety, and economic considerations make sense.
Another very important possibility will be from naturally available geothermal energy. Heat removed from deep in the ground near thermally active volcanic regions should be exploited. It is by far the world’s largest concentrated pool of unused energy. It can be and is used to produce high pressure, superheated steam. Steam then drives the turbo generators needed to produce enormous amounts of electrical energy. That electricity can be fed into the national grid, or, running 24 hours a day, can be used for the continuous manufacture of hydrogen.
Interestingly, the U.S. has within its borders, the world’s largest known geothermal hot spot. It is situated beneath Yellowstone National Park. The park itself is known to be atop of the caldera of the largest ancient volcano that has ever existed anywhere on earth. Other unexploited volcanic regions exist in the cascade mountains of Washington State, Mt. Rainier and Mt. St. Helens. In addition, Alaska’s Aleutian Islands and the main island of Hawaii have similar potential.
If the Yellowstone region and other known hot spots were exploited for their geothermal energy, we might be able to produce enough electrical power to provide the US with total energy independence.
The following seven point outline demonstrates the advantages of a geothermal system:
1. You don’t need fuel to burn.
2. You needn’t have to build a dam with its inherent disturbance of the ecosystem.
3. You don’t need fissile nuclear fuels, nor fuel waste management.
4. There are few waste products, and little atmospheric pollution.
5. It is nearly steady: 24 hours per day, 7 days per week.
6. It uses the well known and commonly used Rankine cycle turbine power system. Most such systems expand high pressure steam.
7. No technical breakthroughs are required. We can build such systems today.
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1:14:00 PM EDT
Hydrogen
OUR HYDROGEN FUTURE
by Dave Cohen
Hydrogen will eventually be the fuel of the future. It can replace all the fossil fuels (coal, petroleum, and natural gas) for heating, surface transportation and limited types of air transportation, as well as local power production. Its only significant combustion product will be clean, harmless water vapor which eventually drops back to the earth’s surface as rainfall. Most harmful pollutants such as smoke and carbon monoxide, toxic gas products that lead to smog and acid rain, and finally persistent greenhouse gases will disappear from the burning process entirely.
As long as there is carbon in the fuel we burn, carbon dioxide (CO2) is produced in the exhaust. Removing the CO2 gas from the exhaust stacks is a monumental task, and is neither mechanically nor economically practical.
The numbers are quite simple.
• Coal produces about 300 lbs. of CO2 per million BTUs of thermal energy consumed. Wood and charcoal are similar to coal.
• Fuel Oil and gasoline produce about 175 lbs. of CO2 per million BTUs of thermal energy consumed.
• Natural Gas produces about 130 lbs. of CO2 per million BTUs of thermal energy consumed.
• Hydrogen produces no CO2, few pollutants, and no waste.
A global switch to hydrogen can help eliminate health problems due to poor air quality. It will reduce or stop acid poisoning of our lakes. It will help slow the phenomenon of global warming. Lastly, it will forever end dependence on foreign crude oil supplies.
Construction of the infrastructure needed for our hydrogen based future will produce lifelong jobs for a huge portion of the world’s population.
Hydrogen is readily available. It comes from a renewable and inexhaustible source as a component of water (H2O). Obtaining it is relatively safe and easy. The most straightforward and environmentally friendly method of breaking water into its components of hydrogen and oxygen is by passing an electric current through the liquid. In other words, it requires a source of electrical energy.
Hydrogen cannot be a practical fuel, if fossil fuel feed stock is needed as a hydrogen source or if fossil fuel combustion is required to produce the electrical energy necessary to release the hydrogen. Therefore, the energy sources for future hydrogen production will have to come from clean, renewable energy resources. A common renewable source is from hydroelectric power generated from rivers with large dams. We do not have enough hydropower resources for large scale hydrogen production. Other fossil fuel free energy could possibly come from wind driven turbines, solar collectors, ocean wave or tidal sources. Even nuclear and some day possibly thermonuclear sources may be considered. All of these should be planned and implemented only when ecological, safety, and economic considerations make sense.
Another very important possibility will be from naturally available geothermal energy. Heat removed from deep in the ground near thermally active volcanic regions should be exploited. It is by far the world’s largest concentrated pool of unused energy. It can be and is used to produce high pressure, superheated steam. Steam then drives the turbo generators needed to produce enormous amounts of electrical energy. That electricity can be fed into the national grid, or, running 24 hours a day, can be used for the continuous manufacture of hydrogen.
Interestingly, the U.S. has within its borders, the world’s largest known geothermal hot spot. It is situated beneath Yellowstone National Park. The park itself is known to be atop of the caldera of the largest ancient volcano that has ever existed anywhere on earth. Other unexploited volcanic regions exist in the cascade mountains of Washington State, Mt. Rainier and Mt. St. Helens. In addition, Alaska’s Aleutian Islands and the main island of Hawaii have similar potential.
If the Yellowstone region and other known hot spots were exploited for their geothermal energy, we might be able to produce enough electrical power to provide the US with total energy independence.
The following seven point outline demonstrates the advantages of a geothermal system:
1. You don’t need fuel to burn.
2. You needn’t have to build a dam with its inherent disturbance of the ecosystem.
3. You don’t need fissile nuclear fuels, nor fuel waste management.
4. There are few waste products, and little atmospheric pollution.
5. It is nearly steady: 24 hours per day, 7 days per week.
6. It uses the well known and commonly used Rankine cycle turbine power system. Most such systems expand high pressure steam.
7. No technical breakthroughs are required. We can build such systems today.
Written by jdc2485 Blog about this entry |
Add to del.icio.us | digg this
