Hydro: a new energy source to replace oil and gas in the future

LTS: It is no wonder that Australian Prime Minister John Howard of the host of the APEC summit this year raised the issue of climate change (from emissions) as the main theme. It was not for demonstration, but since 2003, US President George W. Bush has decided to invest in a new source of energy, hydrogen, and the world's leading car companies have rushed into the field. A new vision not only in the field of energy .

A new energy source, which is hydrogen (hydrogen, H2). Hydrogen is the highest heat-burning gas of all natural fuels, used as fuel to launch spacecraft. An important feature of hydrogen is that in the molecule there is no other chemical element, such as carbon (C), sulfur (S), nitrogen (N), so their combustion product is only water (H ₂ O ), called the ideal clean fuel.

Hydro - endless energy source and environmentally friendly

Hydrogen is a safe fuel source, which cannot cause any environmental incidents for humans, unlike nuclear energy that has caused many radioactive leaks as happened in recent years.

Honda FCX (2006) uses hydrogen fuel cell (Photo: Automobilemag)

Like the radiation leak on March 28, 1979 at The Three-Mile Island Factory (Pennsylvania, USA); accident of nuclear reactor explosion on April 26, 1976 at Chernobyl Factory (Ukraine, the former Soviet Union); September 30, 1999 incident caused 119 people infected with radiation at Tokaimura radioactive fuel recycling plant (Ibakari province, Japan); Water and steam pipe burst on August 9, 2004 at Mihama Nuclear Power Plant (Fukui Prefecture, Japan) killed five workers.

Also in this factory in 2006 a fire occurred again. Most recently, after the Chuetsu 6.8 earthquake on the Richter scale on July 16, 2007, a very serious leak occurred at Kashiwazaki Kariwa (Niigata prefecture), the world's largest nuclear power plant. , Japan).

Hydrogen fuel cell (Photo: TTO)

About 400 barrels of nuclear waste were broken, some of the radioactive liquid flowed into the sea, forcing the plant to shut down for at least a year for the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to check. . In addition, many other serious problems about nuclear waste, the problem of nuclear material loss into the hands of terrorists, the issue of conflict between nuclear technology monopoly in some countries and advocates break that monopoly.

Hydro - endless energy source

Hydrogen is produced from water and solar energy, so the hydrogen collected also calls hydrogen by solar energy (solar hydrogen). Water and sunshine are endless and everywhere on the planet. Solar energy is blessed with generosity and eternity, about 3x1024 J / day, about 104 times the energy of the world consumed annually. Therefore, hydrogen thanks to solar energy is an endless source of fuel, used from this century to the other century to ensure energy safety for human beings without fear of exhaustion, there can be no energy crisis and security To ensure energy independence for each country, no single country monopolizes or fights hydrogen energy as it once happened with fossil energy.

To obtain hydrogen by solar energy, there are the following two production methods: water electrolysis by solar electric energy through solar cells (solar cells) and photoelectrolysis methods. Water disintegration (photoelectrochemical water splitting) thanks to the radiation energy of the sun in the presence of photocatalyst. Both methods, the reaction occurs as follows:

H ₂ O -> H ₂ + 1 / 2O ₂

Since 1960, General Electric has produced NASA's hydrogen fuel cell battery power supply system, then used for Apollo-Soyuz, Skylab and space shuttle (Space Shuttle). Today, NASA's power in shuttles and space research stations are all supplied by fuel cells, because on space ships, hydrogen and oxygen are available. But the interesting thing is that the fuel cell itself not only provides electricity but also provides ultra-clean drinking water to astronauts, since water is the waste of hydrogen fuel cells.

Hydrogen replaces gasoline for transportation and transportation

There are now many hydrogen (hydrogen car) and hybrid vehicles with hydrogen internal combustion engines and electric motors called hybrid cars (collectively known as hybrid cars with no exhaust fumes). (Zero Emission Vehicle - ZEV) of famous automobile brands such as Honda, Ford, Mercedes Benz . displayed in international car shows.

Japan announced that in 2008 the generations of cars without ZEV exhaust will be born with the name Toyota Prius, Toyota Camry Hybrid, Ford Escape Hybrid, Honda Insigh. Until April 2007, there were 200 hydrogen cars and buses operating in the US. Recently, a trans-Australian test journey on a 4,000km road by car using hydrogen fuel shows that cars can run safely everywhere without gasoline and without completely discharging toxic gas causing pollution. environmental pollution.

Hydrogen instead of gasoline produces electricity

Block of hydrogen fuel cell mounted on cars (Photo: TTO)

Hydrogen is used to produce electricity instead of fossil fuels, which are used in fuel cells. Fuel cells operate according to the principle opposite to the process of producing hydrogen, which means that if the water is made of water, when supplied with the necessary energy, hydrogen and oxygen production will occur, otherwise, if For hydrogen and oxygen combined under certain conditions, water and a corresponding energy are obtained, which is electricity.

Fuel cells are an open system, when hydrogen and oxygen are fed continuously, water and electricity will be generated continuously with constant intensity, how long will depend on the supply of hydrogen and oxygen to the system. As a result, fuel cells act as a true power generator with the input of hydrogen and air oxygen, which emits only water.

There will be no need for generators, no need for massive turbines, no movement mechanisms, no noise, no exhaust smoke. Electromagnetic hydrogen fuel cells can be produced anywhere, from a few watts to hundreds of kilowatt or hundreds of megawatts for all needs, from remote areas, or power stations and buildings to to cities, without the need for massive power plants and electricity from the national electricity distribution center. Consumers can produce electricity themselves. Producing electricity with hydrogen fuel cells will break the monopoly in power generation and distribution.

The hydrogen economy will replace the fossil economy: the energy revolution is being realized

Hydrogen and fuel cells are the key to solving the problem of atmospheric pollution and global climate change - the current global concern when using fossil fuels.

A hydrogen economy that will appear as an oil-gas economy will be forced to radically alter the infrastructure of the fossil economy and human activities. The method of producing new energy sources is no longer search, exploration and exploitation; The method of storing, transporting and supplying hydrogen for consumption needs will have to structure and build new infrastructure. The engine will be built according to the new principle suitable for hydrogen energy, of course will be different from gasoline and oil engines.

Technical standards, safety regulations, and legal regulations when using new energy sources will have to be rebuilt. Education, training, scientific research for the hydrogen economy will require new content, new facilities, completely different from the current fossil economy. The environmental problems caused by hydrogen energy use will no longer be the subject of research on the consumption of money and labor power of scientists, no longer the title of international conferences. about global climate change like when using fossil energy.

All of these changes show that this is truly a profound revolution in the development of human society, and has been judged to be as significant as the previous industrial revolution, when invented steam locomotive with the use of coal fuel.

Today, the hydrogen economy is becoming an irreversible trend in the world. In the US, in 2003, President G. Bush announced a program called " Hydrogen Fuel Initiative" with the decision to spend $ 1.2 billion for research and development aimed at In 2020 hydrogen fuel cell cars must successfully commercialize into reality. The hydrogen economy thanks to solar energy is no longer a vague idea or just a science fiction, the ability to realize hydrogen economy is only about 25-35 years away! As US President G. Bush hopes 'the first car in the life of today's newborns to drive will be a ZEV hydrogen vehicle.'

Oil - gas is not endless

Today, few people think of a " dead place " at some point because there is no gasoline!However, according to the most recent estimates, the total reserves of fossil energy sources include oil, natural gas, coal worldwide today if converted into coal about 1,279 GTCE (GTCE - Giga Tonnes Coal Equivalent, equivalent to 1 billion tons of coal, of which oil is about 329 GTCE, natural gas is about 198 GTDE, coal is about 697 GTCE.Thus, if the current level of exploitation and use is as follows: oil 5.5 GTCE / year, natural gas 3.0 GTCE / year, coal 4.1 GTCE / year, the amount of fossil resources the remaining is only enough for 42 years for oil, 65 years for natural gas and 170 years for coal;Not to mention that the demand for energy in the next year will increase more than the previous year, so the remaining time will be shorter than forecast.

Oil - gas is not harmless

Characteristics of fossil resources are in the chemical composition containing carbon (C), hydrogen (H), oxygen (O), nitrogen (N), sulfur (S), especially in coal. Accompanied by radioactive substances uranium (U) and thorium (Th).When burning coal, the atmosphere emits a significant amount of radioactive material.Only in 2000, the world emitted about 12,000 tons of thorium and 5,000 tons of uranium.

The use of fossil resources in the form of fuel has left us and our people living with tremendous consequences.

Dr. TRAN MANH TRUNG