Peter.N. wrote: 03 Apr 2021, 00:00
I don't see how they can viably produce hydrogen. They do it on Orkney but they have loads of spare capacity there.
There is a bit of a queue in the Hydrogen production bandwagon and enough players, offering their services to make it happen no matter how inefficient the process is, or how difficult or expensive it is to transport it to where it is needed or to keep the lightest and smallest element confined in pipelines.
H2 has some properties which make it an easy sell to policymakers and governments around the world, and the reason, as well as the vested interests of oil and gas companies, why so much investment is heading its way.
Burn Hydrogen and all you produce is beautiful clean water
You can make it from water producing hydrogen for fuel and beautiful clear oxygen to breathe
Hydrogen isn't going to run out, the world has water water everywhere to make as much hydrogen as we need
You can fill up your tank in a few minutes just like petrol
Only one general negative
An Airship Exploded in 1937
In order of perceived merit,
Green Hydrogen-Using Surplus Wind/Solar/Hydro and Electrolysers.
Like on Orkney, as an alternative to Batteries as an energy store for any surplus generated on a 24/7 basis from wind generation in particular. Developments happening all the time eg
The Global Race to Produce Hydrogen Offshore Seems a touch crazy to me. Electricity is reasonably well contained in cables, better and more efficient, less costly than hydrogen in a pipe
Blue Hydrogen- Yes the new Energy Companies (former Big Oil and Gas) will happily take methane, put an enormous amount of energy into it, and steam reform it or crack it into Hydrogen to store a tiny proportion of the energy put into making it. As put in a comment I read...
"So they are going to use vast amounts of energy to remove energy from methane to make a gas that is a lousy motor fuel."
Don't worry about that.....Old Big Oil and Gas will be ready and willing to make as much blue hydrogen as they can with a fairly safe bet that the volume of proper Green Hydrogen will not be sufficient short or long term to destroy the market for blue hydrogen.
Grey Hydrogen Let's be generous and not call it "black", but basically business as usual, producing hydrogen from Oil and gas without bolting on any Carbon capture and storage complications.
I do follow the Hydrogen Story with interest, but is the thing at the heart of it a desire to recreate the experience of the past, hydrogen stations replacing petrol stations, hydrogen replacing the gas in your home cooker or boiler with no noticeable change, and attempting to pipe the worlds lightest element in pipework that struggles to contain methane, and which will undoubtedly require business as usual, natural gas to be extracted, and processed by the usual suspects, to feed point of use hydrogen to homes and fuel pumps.
Hydrogen does seem an unnecessary step. It would be more efficient to make electricity from Natural gas with carbon capture and storage than to make blue hydrogen, but there is a hydrogen bandwagon which stubbornly isn't going away anytime soon.
Regards Neil
go the green industrial revolution 
