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The hydrogen fuel hype: what is it all about?
Among the many great challenges of our time, climate change remains the most publicized and garners the most global interests from governments and investors for innovative solutions. Today, there exists a range of technologies which aim to reduce or eliminate CO2 emissions in the earth’s atmosphere. In many future systems, one such technology is the use of hydrogen as an energy carrier. The use of renewable technology coupled with conventional economic evaluation parameters is the go to solution for CO2 abatement. Centralised capture and storage of renewable energy are very costly. Mature renewable technolgies still lack the technical reliability (intermittency) to allow significant deep cuts in global emissions from fossil fuel consomption. Many believe hydrogen, whether used as an intermediate product in CO2 capture or as an energy carrier and storage medium for renewable energy, provides a clear pathway to a green future. Is that so? In this article, we will explore the most promising business proposition of hydrogen fuel which consists of injecting hydrogen into the natural gas network.
Before we assess the viability of a hydrogen project, it is important to know how a hydrogen fuel cell works and what makes the idea so appealing to many. Hydrogen is the most abundant element in the universe including our planet. Any technology tapping into that particular…
