What can humans do to change hydrogen into a usable energy source.?

Answer 1

Hydrogen is not an energy source. I is a clean burning fuel, but energy is required to produce hydrogen.

Answer 2

Most of the hydrogen on earth is tied up with oxygen in the form of water. It can be freed, but it takes energy, usually electrical energy (electrolysis). Of course the question then is where does this electricity come from and what energy source was used to generate it.

In practice, the most economical source of hydrogen is not from water, but from natural gas. Natural gas is mostly methane or CH4. The hydrogen can be freed from the carbon through reaction with water in a process called steam reforming, which also frees up some hydrogen from the steam (water). This also produces carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide (the carbon has to go somewhere). The carbon monoxide can be reacted with more steam in what is known as a water shift reaction to produce even more hydrogen and CO2. The CO2 and hydrogen can be separated fairly easily producing essentially pure hydrogen. The CO2 is typically vented to the atmosphere, but it can be collected and sequestered in deep wells, and this is being done in a few locations. The hydrogen can then be uses as a fuel. Ideally, the fuel user would be located close to the hydrogen generation facility to avoid the need of transporting the hydrogen over long distances. Hydrogen fueled power generation is here today and being used.

Answer 3

It's going to take a lot of money and a lot of time. This would be like asking someone in 1800 how we could take oil out of the ground and turn it into a usable energy source. There is a ton of invention required. The toughest is distribution and storage. Hydrogen gets stored as a liquid which means it has to be very cold. Even with the best insulation, it evaporates (ever see the vapors coming out of the shuttle tanks). Right now, if you filled a car with hydrogen and didn't drive it, all the fuel would evaporate away in a week and with a full tank, the range of a vehicle is about 100 miles.

Answer 4

Hydrogen needs to change to be a usable energy source, it already is. The problem is that we need to find a way of efficiently producing hydrogen. Right now it costs more energy to produce than it's use generates.

Answer 5

WRONG QUESTION !!!

H2 is usable... The question is rather HOW to generate this usable secondary energy since Hydrogen can´t be found in sufficient concentrations and useful forms in the nature and requires an chemical process to be generated.

The most advanced project is the European Hydrosol project which targets the direct production of hydrogen from concentrated solar energy at lower temperature than usual

Answer 6

If society were to convert to a hydrogen economy the results would be devastating: all that greenhouse gas going up into the atmosphere and fueling global warming. Yes, the product of hydrogen combustion is water vapor, which is a greenhouse gas. Be careful what you ask for cause you just might get it.

Answer 7

No changes are needed to the hydrogen its self. The problem is building a safe way to burn it and control it. We could use it in car engines, but you would have to have a hydrogen tank in your car that could explode in a collision. It is a viable energy source, we just need to develop the technology to harness its potential.

Answer 8

As a energy source for your car it is very dangerous. The atoms are so small they will leak through almost anything. Very explosive ,the most explosive,

Answer 9

Nothing! Nature already did it.
Now all we need is fusion power to create enough without extra pollution, to use it.

Answer 10

Add oxygen and it explodes. Put it in an auto engine & the explosion causes work.