Honda's Hydrogen Gambit

Honda's Hydrogen Gambit
By: Matthew

By now some of you may have noticed that Honda is pushing a hydrogen fuel-cell automobile in limited markets in the United States (notably California). Apparently Honda feels confident that there are enough hydrogen filling stations being built to meet the needs of would-be buyers of the FCX Clarity. Let us ignore the automobile's merits (or lack thereof) for the time being and consider carefully what this means: Honda is betting that hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles will compete directly with or even supplant vehicles running on gasoline, ethanol (or e85), diesel/biodiesel, or electricity. That's a bold statement, even for a major automotive manufacturer like Honda; the future of fuels is uncertain, and hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles that utilize stored hydrogen from a pump may be one of the least viable alternative-fuel solutions on the market.

The problems with storing hydrogen for use in a fuel-cell are numerous: hydrogen is a highly combustible, low-density fuel that must be stored at ridiculously high pressures in expensive storage tanks. Gasoline, ethanol, and diesel/biodiesel fuels are also volatile and dangerous, but they are generally cheaper and easier to store and transport than hydrogen. Production of hydrogen is also an issue since hydrogen doesn't exactly grow on trees. There are numerous means by which to extract hydrogen from a variety of compounds, though most if not all hydrogen-extraction methods are "lossy" in that the energy required to separate and isolate hydrogen from its source is greater than that which will be released when the hydrogen is used as an energy source. Hydrogen production generally requires either electricity, fossil fuels, or biofuels which could often be used more efficiently in other applications. Producing hydrogen is neither cheap nor efficient. Going out of our way to replace gasoline with hydrogen will do nothing for the environment if we obtain all our hydrogen from coal-fired power plants or coal gasification plants. Not all hydrogen-separation methods are environmentally unfriendly, mind you; one could make the case for a hydrogen economy if a sufficiently effective and high-volume solar thermolyzer were developed (thermolysis being the process of breaking water down into its component parts - oxygen and hydrogen - at extremely high temperatures). Even existing solar panels could be used to produce hydrogen via electrolysis, although doing so has not yet proven to be terribly cost-effective. In reality, the United States will see mass-production of hydrogen from either nuclear power plants or coal plants of some sort which will not necessarily give us the energy independence or environmental benefits that the public seeks from alternative energy sources.

The idea of a hydrogen economy isn't a bad one, even if it does lock us into the pay-at-pump mentality that has driven our gasoline/diesel economy for decades. Most individuals will have neither the inclination nor the ability to produce hydrogen on their own despite the fact that consumer-level electrolyzers could theoretically be marketable. The real sticking point for home-brew hydrogen operations will be in production, pressurization, and transport/storage of the gas. It will be difficult to carry enough hydrogen from a home-based production facility for anything more than local driving, and a unit capable of pressurizing hydrogen well enough to fill a fuel-cell auto would probably be pretty expensive. At that point, you're almost better off with plug-in hybrids that would not require expensive and elaborate electrolyzers/hydrogen separators for refueling at home and would be capable of plugging into any number of outlets in numerous locations for remote refueling. Developments in capacitor technology will further improve the longevity, capacity, weight, and cost factors on batteries making plug-ins increasingly desirable as competitors to hydrogen fuel-cell cars. Of course, plug-in hybrids and the like require electricity as well, but they can be fed from a solar array or wind farm just as easily as could a hydrogen fuel-cell car (aided by an electrolyzer of course). Other alternatives, such as compressed-air vehicles and cars that purport to run partially or fully on plain old water, may emerge as superior technologies when compared to existing plug-in hybrid and fuel-cell cars. We all want the best technology to win, but as is so often the case, the most profitable technology will be touted by corporations and politicians alike to the detriment of American technological superiority.

Hydrogen fuel-cell autos offer us a chance at energy independence, but that chance comes at a heavy price. It is expensive and somewhat dangerous to store and transport hydrogen, and it is difficult to produce it in large enough quantities to feed the American appetite for energy. Better solutions could likely be found, but those solutions will be ignored by many industry players in favor of a technology that maintains the pay-at-pump status quo that has lined so many pockets in the past. As interesting as the Honda FCX Clarity may seem, we deserve better.