Debunking The Myth: Today’s Industrial Use of Hydrogen Doesn’t Mean It’s A Good Energy Carrier

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Advocates of hydrogen usually misleadingly level to its widespread industrial use right this moment as proof of its potential as a broad vitality service. This, nonetheless, is a transparent instance of the equivocation fallacy: the time period “hydrogen use” is subtly shifted from its real-world position in business to counsel a broader, extra common vitality answer.

It is a companion article to the Cranky Stepdad vs Hydrogen for Energy materials. In an identical method to John Cook dinner’s Skeptical Sciencethe intent is a fast and catchy debunk, a second degree of element within the Companion to Cranky Stepdad vs Hydrogen for Energyafter which a fuller article because the third degree of element.

Hydrogen for vitality is like attempting to make use of a wrench for a screwdriver job—inefficient and dear.

At the moment, almost all industrial hydrogen is “gray hydrogen,” derived from fossil fuels like pure fuel by steam methane reforming. In keeping with Staffell et al. (2019), this type of hydrogen is prevalent resulting from price benefits and established infrastructure. Nevertheless, its manufacturing inherently includes important greenhouse fuel emissions, undermining its local weather advantages (DOE, 2023).

Furthermore, the hydrogen employed right this moment primarily serves as a chemical feedstock relatively than a direct vitality service. Bertuccioli et al. (2014) underline that hydrogen’s industrial roles — corresponding to ammonia synthesis or refining — don’t translate simply into broader vitality purposes. These makes use of are specialised, localized, and have present distribution networks, in contrast to what can be required for a broader hydrogen financial system.

Making an attempt to transition hydrogen right into a widespread vitality service would necessitate constructing intensive new storage, transport, and distribution networks, incurring substantial prices and effectivity losses. The European Union’s Hydrogen Technique explicitly acknowledges that hydrogen is considerably much less environment friendly than direct electrification in most situations, notably for heating and transportation (European Union, 2020).

This strategic mismatch illustrates a basic instance of the equivocation fallacy: conflating hydrogen’s present specialised industrial utilization with suitability as a common vitality answer. As Bertuccioli et al. (2014) emphasize, whereas water electrolysis might yield low-carbon hydrogen, its financial and energetic prices stay prohibitive in comparison with direct electrification in most situations.

Equally, IRENA (2022) notes substantial effectivity losses and infrastructure challenges related to hydrogen manufacturing, transport, and storage, reinforcing the argument for electrification because the superior alternative for broad vitality purposes.

In brief, equating present industrial hydrogen utilization with broad applicability as an vitality service exemplifies an equivocation fallacy. The fact stays that hydrogen’s industrial purposes right this moment — primarily as a fossil-based chemical feedstock — don’t justify its broad deployment as an vitality service, particularly when extra environment friendly and cost-effective electrification options exist.

References:

• Bertuccioli, L., et al. (2014). Examine on improvement of water electrolysis within the EU.
• European Union. (2020). Hydrogen Technique for a Local weather-Impartial Europe.
• IRENA. (2022). Hydrogen in Trade: Its Function within the Power Transition.
• Staffell, I., et al. (2019). “The role of hydrogen in energy systems.” Power Environ. Sci.
• U.S. Division of Power. (2023). Hydrogen Program Plan.