Net-Zero Aviation Is Possible With Hydrogen Fuel Cells. My company, ZeroAvia, is tackling the transition to zero-emission aviation through the development of hydrogen-electric engines for airplanes

submitted by Chop_Chop from wired.co.uk

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[–]HiddenFox 2 insightful - 2 fun2 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 2 fun -  (3 children)

I want to start by saying I believe Hydrogen is the only true long term alternative from fossil fuels. That being said the technology has issues that need to be resolved. There are two main ones that I see and a handful of smaller issues.

First and probably most important is the need for iridium. Like cobalt for batteries it's rare any only found in a few places around the globe. If we can't find a better source or alternative then hydrogen will never work long term. (FYI iridium is need for the fuel cells) The cells also need platinum too. Again a very rare and expensive metal.

Next is how hydrogen is "made". There are very few natural pure hydrogen sources. While abundant, most of it is bound and requires energy to separate it. Hydrogen is labeled with different colors to represent how it was produced. A long story short, black hydrogen is made with fossil fuels which defeats the purpose. Blue hydrogen, like clean coal is a shame and not really friendly for the environment. Just made to sound so. The only true way to make it emission free is to use nuclear power and sadly there is a huge push back for the technology.

Another hurtle is the cold. Fuel cells make water and of course water freezes. Frozen water inside the fuel cell would damage it so it needs to be warmed up before it's used. This might not be an issue with an airplane as it could be plugged in at the hanger or terminal. This is more of an issue for personal vehicles. A car sitting in a parking lot for 3 hours would need to be warmed up before running on hydrogen. Once the system is up to temp the cells can keep themselves warm. This problem can be engineered away so don't see it as a major hurtle.

There are other issues too like how hydrogen can leach into the walls of storage tanks and make them brittle. I think this is an issues that can be dealt with given regular inspections.

In summery the only issue that could stop hydrogen is a lack of iridium and or platinum. I think everything else can be solved in the near future.

[–]Chop_Chop[S] 2 insightful - 2 fun2 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 2 fun -  (2 children)

Next is how hydrogen is "made". There are very few natural pure hydrogen sources. While abundant, most of it is bound and requires energy to separate it.

The US has wasted trillions of dollars over the last 25 years on war and murdering people 8,000 miles away. Meanwhile, China has literally taken over the Solar panel business because they invested in that and not war. Now they have set their sights on Hydrogen - see: https://archive.is/HOWYl

The only true way to make it emission free is to use nuclear power

China (among others) disagrees

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GOEQsq6iVIE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a_tUiYIvfHM

Another hurtle is the cold. Fuel cells make water and of course water freezes. Frozen water inside the fuel cell would damage it so it needs to be warmed up before it's used.

Toyota (and China, others) have solved this.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BXr2kCl8h1E

SHIJIAZHUANG, Jan. 9 (Xinhua) -- Nearly a year after the city of Zhangjiakou in north China's Hebei Province co-hosted the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games, 444 hydrogen-powered buses have become the preferred mode of public transport for locals. These buses were first used for the Olympics.
https://english.news.cn/20230109/5e9a9e7fefe8462f84e52248efab15c6/c.html

[–]HiddenFox 2 insightful - 2 fun2 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 2 fun -  (1 child)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GOEQsq6iVIE YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a_tUiYIvfHM YouTube

Thanks for sharing. I agree with your statement on the US vs China and how China has the solar market.

I have a few issue with a solar power hydrogen plant vs a nuclear option.

A quick search told me the average US nuclear plant is about 1 Gigawatt. That would mean the Chinese plant would have to be 5 times the size to compete with a nuclear option. To be honest I'm not sure of how the cost would stack up.

Another thing to consider is nuclear operates 24/7 where a solar is only during daylight, furthering the spread of the cost.

Also nuclear plants can be built in places where solar is not as effective. One thing I was surprised to learn about solar where I live (East coast of Canada) is just how little energy is made in the winter then the summer. I think this would be a big issue in some places if you are trying to produce local.

There are solutions to all this but I just wanted to give context as to why I didn't talk about renewables as an energy source.

Another hurtle is the cold. Fuel cells make water and of course water freezes. Frozen water inside the fuel cell would damage it so it needs to be warmed up before it's used.

Toyota (and China, others) have solved this.

Thanks again. I knew this one was on the verge of being solved.

Just to re-summarize my original comment, I do fell all the issues with hydrogen are solvable in the near future with the exception of the rare elements that are needed in the cells. But who knows what alternatives might come forward.

[–]Chop_Chop[S] 2 insightful - 2 fun2 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 2 fun -  (0 children)

Another thing to consider is nuclear operates 24/7 where a solar is only during daylight, furthering the spread of the cost.

Also nuclear plants can be built in places where solar is not as effective. One thing I was surprised to learn about solar where I live (East coast of Canada) is just how little energy is made in the winter then the summer. I think this would be a big issue in some places if you are trying to produce local.

Good points. The energy transition will take more than one "solution" - the more the better.

Nuclear energy may have a big role with H2. I'm against constructing something if descendants have to babysit waste for the next few generations - and this may be solved already, if not, one day.

Regarding hydrogen production on the East Coast, here's an American hydrogen pioneer who built a solar-hydrogen house in 2006 - in New Jersey, USA. He uses hydrogen in the winter that was made earlier in the year. This may not be work at scale but it shows it can work for a house.

http://hydrogenhouseproject.org

Thank you for a civil discussion. Hoping you'll check back every so often to see the latest in the booming hydrogen energy field! It's on FIRE - especially now that India has joined China in prioritizing hydrogen as a future fuel. That's around 30% of the world population and those 2 nations will compete for clean energy. Imagine no more oil - and the end of the PetroDollar!