There are three ways to use hydrogen energy:
1) combustion with internal combustion;
2) conversion to electricity using a fuel cell;
3) nuclear fusion.
The basic principle of a hydrogen internal combustion engine is the same as that of a gasoline or diesel internal combustion engine. The hydrogen internal combustion engine is a slightly modified version of the traditional gasoline internal combustion engine. Hydrogen combustion burns hydrogen directly without using other fuels or generating exhaust water vapor.
Hydrogen internal combustion engines do not require an expensive special environment or catalytic converters to fully do the job – so there are no problems with excessive costs. Many successfully developed hydrogen internal combustion engines are hybrid, meaning that they can use liquid hydrogen or gasoline as fuel.
The hydrogen internal combustion engine is thus becoming a good transition product. For example, if you don’t reach your destination after refueling but you can find a hydrogen refueling station, you can use hydrogen as a fuel. Or you can use liquid hydrogen first and then a regular filling station. Hence, people will not be afraid of using hydrogen vehicles if hydrogen filling stations are not yet widely available.
The hydrogen internal combustion engine has a small ignition energy; it is easy to achieve combustion – therefore, better fuel economy can be achieved in wider working conditions.
The application of hydrogen energy is mainly achieved through fuel cells. The safest and most efficient way of using it is to convert hydrogen energy into electricity through such cells.
The basic principle of electricity generation by hydrogen fuel cells is the reverse reaction of the electrolysis of water, hydrogen and oxygen, which are fed to the cathode or the anode. Due to the spread of hydrogen – after the electrolyte reaction – the emitted electrons reach the anode through an external load through the cathode.
The main difference between the hydrogen fuel cell and the ordinary battery is that the latter is an energy storage device that stores electrical energy and releases it when required, while the hydrogen fuel cell is purely a power generating device, such as a power plant.
The same as an electrochemical power generating device that converts chemical energy directly into electrical energy. Using a hydrogen fuel cell to generate electricity converts the chemical combustion energy directly into electrical energy without burning.
The energy conversion rate can reach 60 to 80% and has a low pollution rate. The device can be large or small and is very flexible. Basically, hydrogen batteries work differently than internal combustion engines: Hydrogen batteries use chemical reactions to generate electricity to power cars, while internal combustion engines use heat to power cars.
Since the fuel cell vehicle does not involve any combustion, there are neither mechanical losses nor corrosion. The electricity generated by the hydrogen combustion battery can be used directly to drive the four wheels of the vehicle, eliminating the mechanical transmission device.
The countries doing the research are aware that the battery of the hydrogen internal combustion engine will put an end to environmental pollution. Technology research and development has already successfully produced hydrogen cell vehicles: The cutting-edge automotive industries include GM, Ford, Toyota, Mercedes-Benz, BMW, and other large international companies.
In nuclear fusion, the connection of hydrogen nuclei (deuterium and tritium) to heavier nuclei (helium) releases enormous amounts of energy.
Thermonuclear reactions or radical changes in atomic nuclei are currently very promising new sources of energy. The hydrogen nuclei involved in the nuclear reaction such as hydrogen, deuterium, fluorine, lithium, iridium (especially from meteorites that have fallen on our planet) etc. receive the necessary kinetic energy from thermal movement and cause the fusion reaction.
The thermonuclear reaction itself behind the hydrogen bomb explosion, which can generate a great deal of heat in the blink of an eye, cannot yet be used for peaceful purposes. However, under certain conditions, the thermonuclear reaction can achieve a controlled thermonuclear reaction. This is an important aspect for experimental research. The controlled thermonuclear reaction is based on the fusion reactor. Once a fusion reactor is successful, it can provide humankind with the cleanest and most inexhaustible source of energy.
The feasibility of a larger controlled nuclear fusion reactor is tokamak. Tokamak is a toroidal-shaped device that uses a strong magnetic field to confine plasma. Tokamak is one of several types of magnetic containment devices designed to produce controlled thermonuclear fusion energy. As of 2021, it is the leading candidate for a fusion reactor.
The name tokamak comes from Russian (toroid’naja kamera s magnitnymi katuškami: toroidal chamber with magnetic coils). Its magnetic configuration is the result of research carried out in 1950 by Soviet scientists Andrei Dmitrievič Sakharov (1921-1989) and Igor ‘Evgen’evič Tamm (1895-1971), although the name dates back more precisely to 1957.
In the center of the tokamak is an annular vacuum chamber with coils wound on the outside. When excited, a huge spiral magnetic field is created in the tokamak, which heats the plasma inside to a very high temperature, thereby achieving the purpose of nuclear fusion.
Energy, resource and environmental problems desperately need hydrogen energy to solve the environmental crisis, but hydrogen energy processing is not yet mature and most research on hydrogen storage materials is still at the exploratory laboratory stage. Hydrogen power generation should also focus on the “biological” generation of hydrogen.
Other methods of hydrogen production are not sustainable and do not meet the scientific development requirements. Within biological production, microbial production requires an organic combination of genetic engineering and chemical engineering so that the existing technology can be fully used to develop needs-based hydrogen-producing organisms as soon as possible. The production of hydrogen from biomass requires continuous improvement and vigorous technology promotion. It’s a difficult process.
Hydrogen storage, which focuses on the discovery of new aspects of materials or their manufacture, is not yet large-scale industrial. The consideration of different hydrogen storage mechanisms and the material to be used also requires further investigations.
Furthermore, each hydrogen storage material has its own advantages and disadvantages, and most storage material properties have the properties related to adductivity and the properties of a single, more commonly known material.
It is believed, therefore, that efforts should focus on developing a composite hydrogen storage material that integrates the storage benefits of multiple individual materials for greater future efforts.
Professor Valori is President of the International World Group
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