Green H2 has over the last few years continued to receive attention as a possible clean alternative to fossil fuel sources. The growing interest in it is attributable to many factors one of them being the fact that it is the most abundant element in the atmosphere. Interestingly, the only by-product from its extraction or use is water. For this and other reasons, leading companies in the world and several countries are investing in green H2 projects. Arguably, there are many reasons to believe that green H2 is the energy source of the future. Most importantly, if the many projects currently underway yield technologies that will make hydrogen production, transportation and storage easy, this element might, indeed, help reduce global warming and unwanted emissions.
Despite the many advantages associated with the production and use of green H2 as a source of energy, there has been a debate on some aspects about it. Some of the arguments that critics have put forward include the fact that green H2 production requires energy and the energy that’s used in the process might not be renewable. The production process, therefore, according to them is inefficient and expensive compared with the production of some other forms of renewable energy. Also, some critics have termed green H2 projects as stumbling blocks for renewable and inexpensive sources of energy such as solar and wind. Others have also accused those advocating for the adoption of green H2 as investors who are just using the green “cover” to promote hydrogen while in the real sense they are promoting their other products.
Notwithstanding the criticism, the green H2 industry is now a multi-billion dollar market. For instance, the US government and many world-renowned companies are investing their time and resources in green H2 projects intending to come up with technologies and innovations that will make the production, storage, transportation, and use of green H2 in various applications efficient. But that’s not all! From the US to Saudi Arabia to India to Japan to Germany and other countries, there are already many partnerships that are seeking to make the transition process from the use of fossil fuel sources to green H2 easy and successful.
Proponents have put forward many counter-arguments in support of green H2. For instance, they argue that while it is expensive, it is versatile and already a key component in chemical processes in industries including the steel industry. Moreover, many research reports support the idea that green H2 is important in the push to reduce carbon emissions. More specifically, some reports indicate that sustainable green H2 can be highly useful in decarbonizing planes, trucking, boats, and heavy industrial transportation process that in most cases contribute a significant percentage of carbon to the atmosphere.
It is also worth noting that many projects are exploring the possibility of storing hydrogen underground and converting excess energy from other sources into hydrogen as alternative storage or battery. Also, the rise in popularity of battery-powered small vehicles is a big boost for the efforts to adapt, explore and make batteries that use green H2. While a lot is yet to be done to make all these a reality, there are indications that it is possible to achieve the goals related to the use of green H2 as a clean energy source.
Overall, one of the major drawbacks of green H2 is the cost of producing it. Indeed, the cost of making it from natural gas is what makes it a little bit expensive compared to other sources. It’s for this reason that proponents of the use of green H2 as a renewable energy source have come up with ambitious goals to reduce the cost. Most importantly, they are working to make sure that green H2 becomes the bridge to solving the climate change crisis caused by carbon-emitting fossil fuel sources.
