Hydrogen Problems

     The serious problems that are affecting the development of hydrogen cars are; hydrogen storage, the high reactivity of hydrogen, the cost and methods of hydrogen fuel production, consumer demand and the cost of changing the infrastructure to accommodate hydrogen vehicles.

     The concerns surrounding the storage of hydrogen are a major issue. Hydrogen must be stored at extremely low temperatures and high pressure. A container capable of withstanding these specifications is larger than a standard gas tank. Hydrogen storage could be viewed as a problem by consumers.

     Hydrogen is extremely reactive. Hydrogen is combustible and flammable. The Hindenburg disaster, where a hydrogen filled blimp exploded and many people died, has caused a fear of hydrogen (See Fig. 14).

     Current production of hydrogen takes a lot of energy. If we have to burn fossil fuels to make hydrogen, what have we really gained?   New cleaner energy technology or hydrogen production methods will need to be developed for hydrogen vehicles to make sense.

     Another problem for hydrogen fuel is consumer demand and the cost to change all gasoline filling stations and vehicle production lines into hydrogen (See Fig. 15). The problem is like "the chicken or the egg?".  The major car companies will not start to produce hydrogen cars until there is consumer demand.  Why would a person pay for an expensive car that doesn't have fuel when gas is so cheap? Oil companies will not build filling stations until the hydrogen cars are on the market.  There has been a reluctance on the part of the oil companies to develop a technology where fossil fuels are not needed. Currently the companies control all of the transportation fuel distribution. There is no incentive to develop an expensive technology that would compete against the fossil fuel technology that oil companies control.