[William930t]

Just some varied thoughts on the subject, hoping for a good discussion from the PP Brain Trust, is it really the new energy source with unlimited capabilities?

The talk of hydrogen fuels has been long and not much to really show, yet. I understand the conversion process, storage, transportation, infrastructure and safety factors as reasons for slow acceptance. Then there is the "creation" argument on blue gas (from natural gas) versus green gas (from water). Which process will be acceptable?

Certain areas of Southern California have hydrogen vehicles in service and a network of refueling stations. Cars typically have a 300 mile range, but filling tanks only takes around 5 minutes, sure beats EV recharging times. Also noted, 1 kg of hydrogen is about the same energy content as 1 gallon of gasoline, and range is touted at 70 miles per kg. But it do the fuel cell tanks really need hydrogen compressed to 10,000 PSI?

I am following the continued rise of companies like Plug Power, Ballard Power and Bloom Energy. Not much in the way of profits yet, but likely good long term investments. Also there appears to be a growing home market for hydrogen generators. Several retailers are already selling a 50 lb unit that can generate 160 ml/min, supposedly enough to power a home. All they need is a solar panel and a water source.

A side note, I have followed the slow progress of hydrogen powered race cars. There have been a few aborted projects, with reliability, performance, and heavy weight being the obvious issues. The best success so far was actually back in 2019. A student built prototype, (Forze VIII) finished P2 in the Netherlands Supercar challenge. I haven't read much advancement since then, however Le Mans 2024 will have a class for hydrogen power.

Feel free to post your thoughts and any professional experience, thanks.