Environmental and Health Aspects of Hydrogen Cars by Bob Jent

Environmental and Health Aspects of Hydrogen Cars by Bob Jent


Hydrogen is the only fuel that is low to zero emission for vehicles. The only by-product of these cars is water vapor. Natural gas and coal are used to produce hydrogen today but in the future hydrogen will come almost entirely from renewable resources. There is a scarcity of renewable resource generation today and its high cost make natural gas from companies like Western Pipeline Corporation, the solution for hydrogen production in the near future.

Potential renewable energy resources to produce hydrogen are: wind, hydro, solar, geothermal and biomass. Hydrogen is generated by wind and solar generated electricity produced by electrolysis. If hydrogen used in hydrogen cars is created from water the energy produced makes a closed loop because the waste product is also water. Low emission of air pollutants is a key benefit of hydrogen fuel cell usage resulting in improved respiratory health particularly in urban areas that have poor air quality. Seniors and children are especially vulnerable. Air pollution can trigger attacks in people who suffer from asthma. Symptoms can increase for anyone with chronic lung, heart or circulatory conditions.

A detailed study from Stanford University revealed that up to 6,400 lives could be saved each year if all U.S. current vehicles were converted to hydrogen fuel cell vehicles. When hydrogen is produced from fossil fuels it also produces greenhouse gases in carbon dioxide. However, gasoline combustion engines also produce carbon monoxide, smog-inducing nitrogen oxides and ozone and create microscopic soot particles. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that fossil-fuel automobiles emit 1 ½ billion tons of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere each year. If we were to move completely to hydrogen based automobiles we would eliminate over 95% of these greenhouse gases.

There would also be reduced crop damage because the use of fuel cells will reduce acid rain and ground-level ozone concentrations. Noise pollution will be reduced because fuel cells run quietly. Groundwater contamination will be reduced because fuel cells do not use motor oil and leaks from gasoline storage tanks may also be reduced.

There is worldwide interest in hydrogen fuel cell technology. Governments in the United States, Europe and Japan are committing over $7 billion in the next few years to fuel cell technology development. Europe and Japan will be earlier adopters of this technology than the United States because they can experience more immediate benefits environmentally and economically. The reduction of greenhouse gases and air pollution by nations around the world through the use of hydrogen cars will contribute to improved health for everyone.





About the Author
Bob Jent is the CEO of Western Pipeline Corporation. Western Pipeline Corp specializes in identifying, acquiring and developing existing, producing reserves on behalf of its individual clients.