"First off, hydrogen is just about as close to abundant as one can get. Since over 70% of the Earth's surface is covered with water (that be hydrogen -H 2 O), and also hydrogen is the most common element in the known universe."
Now that the election is over, I am going to step away from politics for a minute (sort of), and address my second favorite subject - science. In particular, the science of energy. During the past eight years (this is where the politics come in), we have become all wrapped around the axle debating the difference between hydrocarbon energy and wind/solar energy. That has been the extent of the debate. However, what many don't know is there is a third option which leaves the other two in the dust. And early in the Obama Administration, Dr. Stephen Chu, the Secretary of Energy, killed it.
What really is the next best thing to replace the gas powered car? One thing. And that is the hydrogen fuel cell. As much as some of us (including Elon Musk - who I have a lot of respect for) would like to think it will be the battery powered electric car - it will not be. Way too many problems and the externalities of production for the batteries might be too much to overcome.
Dr. Michio Kaku, whom I along with many others think is the smartest man on the planet, has an interesting take on our hydrogen future. First off, hydrogen is just about as close to abundant as one can get. Since over 70% of the Earth's surface is covered with water (that be hydrogen -H 2 O), and also hydrogen is the most common element in the known universe.
Those facts scientists have known for hundreds of years. What has not been known is how to harness this energy. Stephen Chu thought it to be impossible, and slammed the door on this possible source of energy getting any money from the Department of Energy. However, private concerns and companies did not. And right now there are some prototype hydrogen cars getting ready to be test marketed in Europe.
The current version of the hydrogen car (and keep in mind, this is only the infancy), can get up to 300 miles on a tank, the engine has zero moving parts, and it takes only five minutes to refuel. Plus (and this is a big one), the exhaust is water - so pure, one could almost drink it. No global warming here.
The science is really starting to take off on hydrogen. New metals, deep water from the ocean which is hydrogen rich, geothermal heat - we are close (within decades) from having energy which is a true game changer.
I have said this before. Fifty years from now (maybe a lot less), you will not recognize our transportation. Fossil fuels will be all but obsolete. Hydrogen fuel will rule the day. Battery power will be advanced to the extent it will be a viable second source. Houses will have solar power with geothermal and the grid as secondary. Oil will still be drilled, as petroleum will still be used in manufacturing. Energy costs will no longer be a back breaker for the family budget.
(Here comes the politics one more time.) I would love to see President Elect Trump appoint someone like Dr. Michio Kaku as his Secretary of Energy. Now, I have no idea of what Dr. Kaku's political views are. Nor do I care. I do know this. He is smart, and he is not an ideologue like Steven Chu was. To move forward, we need smart, very smart people.
Well, you are mostly correct. If we can get around the problem of tanks of hydrogen blowing up like the Hindenburg, and find a really cheap source of energy to extract that hydrogen from sea water, and a safe, easy way of distributing it to 150,000 gas stations in the US alone, we should be well on the way. GM already has a prototype. But it DOES have "moving parts" in the motors, just fewer of them.
ReplyDeleteAs for global warming, the energy to liberate the hydrogen and transport it may contribute to global warming, and water vapor is 96% of greenhouse gasses and this will add to that (but so does gasoline). Fortunately for us scientists, manmade global warming is negligible and we should not be making energy decisions based on it.
Houses will have "solar power and geothermal"? Try getting enough solar power to matter in a Minnesota winter. I have both in my home and still have a substantial utility bill.
I do agree we need smart people in government, but high intelligence has never been a requirement for high office, and there is such a thing as an "educated dunce" like Chu.
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