Hydrogen Economy

Opportunities, Costs, Barriers, and R&D Needs

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• Publisher: National Academies Press
• Year: 2004
• Edition: 0
• eBook ISBN:
  9780309530682
• Topic: Business
• Index: Business

The announcement of a hydrogen fuel initiative in the Presidents 2003 State of the Union speech substantially increased interest in the potential for hydrogen to play a major role in the nations long-term energy future. Prior to that event, DOE asked the National Research Council to examine key technical issues about the hydrogen economy to assist in the development of its hydrogen R&D program. Included in the assessment were the current state of technology; future cost estimates; CO2 emissions; distribution, storage, and end use considerations; and the DOE RD&D program. The report provides an assessment of hydrogen as a fuel in the nations future energy economy and describes a number of important challenges that must be overcome if it is to make a major energy contribution. Topics covered include the hydrogen end-use technologies, transportation, hydrogen production technologies, and transition issues for hydrogen in vehicles.

Table of contents

• FrontMatter
• Acknowledgments
• Contents
• Tables and Figures
• Executive Summary
• 1 Introduction
• 2 A Framework for Thinking About the Hydrogen Economy
• 3 The Demand Side: Hydrogen End-Use Technologies
• 4 Transportation, Distribution, and Storage of Hydrogen
• 5 Supply Chains for Hydrogen and Estimated Costs of Hydrogen Supply
• 6 Implications of a Transition to Hydrogen in Vehicles for the U.S. Energy System
• 7 Carbon Capture and Storage
• 8 Hydrogen Production Technologies
• 9 Crosscutting Issues
• 10 Major Messages of This Report
• References
• Appendixes
• Appendix A Biographies of Committee Members
• Appendix B Letter Report
• Appendix C DOE Hydrogen Program Budget
• Appendix D Presentations and Committee Meetings
• Appendix E Spreadsheet Data from Hydrogen Supply Chain Cost Analyses
• Appendix F U.S. Energy Systems
• Appendix G Hydrogen Production Technologies: Additional Discussion
• Appendix H Useful Conversions and Thermodynamic Properties