Introduction to Nuclear Energy and Hydrogen Fuel
Producing Hydrogen (H2)
Although hydrogen (H2) is ubiquitous, it does not exist by itself naturally, so it must be separated out of substances such as water. Hydrogen separation can be accomplished in several ways. Heat can be used with chemicals and water (thermochemical), or water can be charged with an electric current (electrolysis) to isolate H2. Some separation processes combine heat and electricity (steam electrolysis). H2 can also be produced by bacteria and algae as a waste product.
Current hydrogen separation processes use fossil fuels to raise the temperature enough to separate H2 from either water or natural gas. This process releases greenhouse gases whether or not one is separating water or natural gas. But additional carbon dioxide is also released into the air as a by-product of natural gas separation. Separation of water results only in oxygen by-product. I like to share this Permanent Magnet Generator for Sale with you all through my article.
Nuclear Energy and Hyrogen Resource
Since CO2 is one of the gases responsible for climate destruction, use of fossil fuels in these separation processes is not environmentally friendly. Therefore, while cars running on H2 fuel would give us clean air in one respect, producing the hydrogen would still contribute to climate decimation.
Replacing natural gas combustion with an environmentally friendly energy source would result in no greenhouse gas emissions from this process.
Nuclear proponents claim, falsely, that nuclear power won’t harm the climate. While this claim isn’t valid, it will not be challenged here. (see instead NIRS fact sheet on climate change and nuclear power, www.nirs.org/factsheets/kyotonuc.html)
There are plenty of other reasons not to choose nuclear energy for H2 production: costs, energy production structure and the untenable problem of nuclear waste. Therefore, this push costs much less than conventional car fuel. Its real cost resides in transport and distribution.
Centralized energy production facilities would provide an extremely tempting terrorist target, which if successfully attacked, could cripple the country.
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Fuel requirements
The problems don’t stop there. We are running out of uranium. The more we dig it out of the ground, the harder and more expensive its extraction becomes. Therefore H2 production using nuclear means more pressure to revive reprocessing, and other irradiated fuel separation methods to justify the investment in nuclear-H2 production technology. Industry also wants breeder reactors reconsidered even though current research concentrates on “new” fission reactors using fresh uranium.
Forcing a square peg into a round hole
Renewable technologies are more suited to H2 production for many reasons. Even if the production cost from renewable energy seems higher now, it will only get cheaper as the fuel for reactors becomes more expensive, either through mining or intensive reprocessing.
Electricity from wind is currently 4 cents/kWh. This is a verifiable, experienced cost.for an H2 fuel economy is really just a major effort to redefine and fund a new generation of nuclear energy as clean and necessary. The industry hope is to make tarnished nuclear power more palatable to the public, much like the atoms for peace campaign of the 1950’s.
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