Smoke, smoke, smoke…just one of the “inconveniences” today as a result of our changing climate. The weather repercussions coupled with the IPCC’s latest update have at least thrown the gauntlet once again into the global arena. It proclaims that the prophecies made back in its original report in1990 are coming to pass, and newer research and analysis is predicting an even grimmer scenario for the global ecosystem. Read into it what you want, but as said before, as fossil CO2 is increasingly put into our atmosphere, the earth’s dynamic systems are changing faster and with more extremes. Regardless of what we do RIGHT NOW, changes we see today will only escalate until the “lag” of decreasing CO2 in the atmosphere slowly catches up. It’s taken let’s say the last 50 years to get to this point…it will take many years to make any kind of a backward transition. Regardless of what WE, as nations or global society eventually do, we all will have to adapt to living with smoke, fires, drought, sea-level rise, water availability, changing food production and famine, increase migration problems, loss of “nature,” and the countless problems that have been, and continue to be identified by the various scientific disciplines. It is not a hoax by scientists, but an unimaginable hoax over the years by the greed of the fossil fuel cartel. Enough said for now!!!!!!!
As carbon-free renewable energy continues to make its way to the front of the line, the old hard school fossil and nuclear industries continue to do whatever they can to stay in power. CO2 capture from burning oil, gas, and even coal is sucking up dollars and scientific progress, with the promise that this will solve everything. It’s the proverbial bailing out the sinking Titanic with a teacup. The nuclear push with “new” unproven small reactors is again a pipedream on paper and will take many years and many dollars to be verified and make an impact. And then again, there’s the issue of nuclear waste! We will need all and everything we can do to change the world into a sustainable society. The best hope lies in the various renewable technologies of solar, wind, oceans, water, and more. One important key to their worldwide diversity implementation lies in the use of HYDROGEN as a storage medium. Produced from the splitting of the water molecule H2O, the hydrogen gas can be re-oxidized to create electricity in a fuel cell, or even burned to release heat, although this also creates NOx and other air pollutants.
Everybody wants to get into the hydrogen game. The fossil industry wants to create it by steam-reforming natural gas. (Red Hydrogen…not good) The nuclear industry wants to use nuclear electricity to split water. (Blue Hydrogen…not CO2 neutral) The future demands that we use non-CO2 resources, such as wind and solar, to produce Green Hydrogen!
A lot of players are looking at how hydrogen will be used. The biggest attention is paid by the transportation sector since it is the largest energy user. We will see hydrogen being used in various sectors such as railroads, shipping, trucking, inhouse and local vehicles, and even some aircraft; but I do not foresee a big shift to private cars. The requirements for the infrastructure transition…production, delivery, storage, fueling stations, etc. are enormous and expensive; and are not really necessary. Electricity is easier and safer to move than hydrogen gas, and most of its infrastructure is already in place. Batteries will probably continue to dominate, with new, cheaper, more environmentally friendly technologies being developed every day.
As I’ve said before, the major role of hydrogen will be to store renewably produced electricity. Split water into H2, and then recombine it O2 to release the energy, producing a waste product of water! On-site electrolyzers produce the gas, and onsite fuel cells convert the H2 back into electricity when needed. This can be done in a large-scale solar or wind facility, all the way down to the small microgrids being implemented today. As with any emerging technology, there are research and development requirements that demand economic, political, and social will. New electrolyzing technology has evolved beyond the high school chemistry lab, with a new focus on desalinization, wastewater cleanup, and freshwater management. Many companies are already at the forefront of fuel cell technology. Several companies and countries, such as Ireland and Scotland in the resource-rich North Sea, are leading the charge. Once the “big boys” finally get involved, the profits from our “Green Energy” will drive the exponential technological revolution. The early concept of a nuclear power plant in every garage is being replaced by a renewable/hydrogen microgrid in every neighborhood.
The challenges are great; but because there is a need and money to be made by that need and demand, we will move forward. Despite all the depressing trials and tribulations we face today, I remain optimistic that there are enough intelligent people in this world to guide us through this.
Le the sun shine, the wind blow, and the waters flow!
Just a few readings:
https://www.invw.org/2021/04/23/using-hydrogen-to-back-up-the-grid/
