The H2 economy and fuel cells

Due to growing interest in hydrogen technologies, IDTechEx has released a new report The Hydrogen Economy, Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Production Methods.

It explains the current status of the hydrogen economy, and showing state-of-the-art fuel cells and electrolysers, providing an understanding of the working mechanism and material involved of the different fuel cell technologies, together with the limitations affecting each and every technology.

The report by Daniele Gatti, which predicts a doubling of hydrogen production in 2050, reveals two main periods when hydrogen technologies such as fuel cells were promoted – the 1970s oil crisis and the global warming issue now.

The large availability of oil and the related widespread and low-cost technologies overwhelmed the adoption of hydrogen in the 1970s.

But in the 2000s, after several millions of investments in hydrogen technologies, the effect of climate change set higher standards and requirements for new and green technologies.

Several governments began in the early 2000s to seriously consider the adoption of a hydrogen economy, Japan the first.

Hydrogen has been considered the “oil” of the future.

Produced from renewable sources, consumed without polluting, and used in several sectors, including transportation (such as cars, buses, heavy duty vehicles, marine), energy storage, residential and industrial applications such as in the steel industry and high-grade heat production – to mention a few.

How about batteries? Batteries are energy storage devices, while hydrogen is an energy carrier. Besides the fact that batteries and fuel cells can be adopted in the same sectors like the automotive industry, a hydrogen economy is not meant to substitute or compete with battery technologies.

The hydrogen economy’s purpose is to be adopted together with battery technologies, to reach the target they are meant to be used; reducing pollution by sector electrification.

Visit IDTechEx.com/Hydrogen or www.IDTechEx.com/research/ES for more information.