this post was submitted on 14 Apr 2024
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cross-posted from: https://slrpnk.net/post/8569504

How is the hydrogen made?

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[–] [email protected] 28 points 2 months ago (3 children)

Hydrogen isn't a solution at all. Literally anything is better than using hydrogen from methane, even shovelling coal into steam engines produces less CO2 equivalent.

So, "don't do that, it makes things worse".

I don't think I should have to produce an answer to one of the main problems facing Western society to be able to point out that hydrogen is mostly natural gas under an asbestos bedsheet.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 2 months ago

It could make sense for planes, where batteries are just too heavy. But you'd need to weigh it against things like synthetic electrically produced kerosene or biodiesel.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 2 months ago (1 children)

How about hydrogen from water? Yeah, you need high amounts of electricity to get it, but, as one example, if it's used in ICE engines, isn't that significantly cleaner than petrol? And a lot less damaging than making lithium batteries? Once burned, wouldn't it just react with oxygen to then form water vapour? And then, if it's making water, that's a self-sufficient cycle?

I feel like hydrogen can potentially be a very good solution, but the technology needs to catch up massively. I mean, scientists are getting to on nuclear fusion reactors, and their yield seems a lot better than everything else. Even fission reactors.

Also, I had this thought the other day, and yes, it's extremely futuristic, with the right people in charge thought, but mining gas planets for the hydrogen. We'll more than likely never inhabit those ones or use them for much, so we might as well use them for something, at least. At least before Dyson swarms become a thing.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 2 months ago

Using excess green energy to produce hydrogen is a great option, but those events are pretty rare, and it doesn't produce very much, compared to pyrolysis of natural gas. Using regular electricity isn't very smart, since you're burning hydrocarbons to create hydrogen from water, when you could just get them from the hydrocarbons, so that's even less efficient.

[–] danekrae -5 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) (1 children)

Should keep doing what we've been doing?

WTF is people against asking questions?

[–] [email protected] 11 points 2 months ago (1 children)

Obviously not. But switching to something new and worse also clearly isn't the solution.