Hydrogen as fuel

Hydrogen as fuel

Subject: Science and technology

About Hydrogen:

• Hydrogen is a colourless, odourless, tasteless, flammable gaseous
• Hydrogen is the lightest and the most abundant element in the universe and is what the stars are mostly made of. Hydrogen is so light that about 3 cubic meters of it is leaking out of the earth’s atmosphere every second.
• It has one proton, one electron and no neutron. However, very few hydrogen atoms do have one neutron – such hydrogen is called Deuterium. Even fewer have two neutrons and those are called Tritium.
• When two atoms of Deuterium join with an atom of oxygen, ‘heavy water’ is obtained, used in nuclear reactors as a coolant. Similarly, Tritium water too, a poison. An extremely rare hydrogen atom could have even more neutrons.
• It also carries a lot of energy. One kilogram of hydrogen packs 140 mega joules (MJ) of energy, while petrol and diesel carry close to 46 MJ. So, it’s a pretty good automobile fuel.

Type of Hydrogen Fuel:

• Hydrogen can be produced from a variety of resources, such as natural gas, nuclear power, biogas and renewable power like solar and wind. Based on the source type of hydrogen varies.
• Grey Hydrogen:

Constitutes India’s bulk Production.

Extracted from hydrocarbons (fossil fuels, natural gas).

By product: CO2

• Blue Hydrogen:

Sourced from fossil fuels.

By product: CO, CO2

By products are Captured and Stored, so better than grey hydrogen.

• Green Hydrogen:

If hydrogen is produced through processes that do not emit green house gases, such hydrogen is called ‘green hydrogen’.

Generated from renewable energy (like Solar, Wind).

Green methods of producing hydrogen:

Biomass route: Green hydrogen can be produced by gasification of biomass. 

Electrolysis:Splitting of water into hydrogen and oxygen is the most trusted route of producing green hydrogen. It involves supplying electrons (through electricity) to disturb the tight bond between two hydrogen and one oxygen atom, so that the hydrogen separates itself out.

Established electrolysis technologies in the market – ‘alkaline electrolysers’,  ‘proton exchange membrane’ (PEM) technology, ‘solid oxide electrolysers’  and  ‘anion exchange membrane’ (AEM) electrolysers which is emerging technologies