Hydrogen Production: Conventional Technology
However, there is at least one major reason why Hydrogen had not become the primary source of energy yet:
To the date, there is no commercially viable source of Hydrogen found.
Nowadays, there are several Hydrogen production technologies:
- Water electrolysis
- Hydrocarbons catalytic conversion
- Hydrocarbons partial oxidation
- Ammonia decomposition
- High thermal methods (solar, nuclear etc.)
- Thermal chemical decomposition of water
- Reforming, cracking, pyrolysis, and other refinery processes;
- High thermal water electrolysis
None of the methods listed above is energetically effective i.e. cost efficient.
Cost is the biggest impediment to using Hydrogen. Hydrogen is significantly more expensive to produce than conventional fuels. In addition, the current system for delivering conventional fuels to consumers cannot be used for Hydrogen. As a result, changes must be made in our nation's energy infrastructure to accommodate Hydrogen1. Currently, Hydrogen is three to four times as expensive to produce as gasoline (when produced from its most affordable source, natural gas). The USA President's Hydrogen Fuel Initiative seeks to lower that cost enough to make Hydrogen cost-competitive with gasoline by 2010, and to advance the methods of producing Hydrogen2.
1 International Partnership for Hydrogen Economy, http://www.iphe.net
2 US Department of Energy, http://www.hydrogen.energy.gov/presidents_initiative.html