What is a disadvantage of hydrogen fuel cells?

Expensive to manufacture due to the high cost of catalysts (platinum) Lack of infrastructure to support hydrogen distribution. Much of the fuel cell technology currently available is in the prototype phase and has not yet been validated. Hydrogen is expensive to produce and is not widely available. Green hydrogen produced by electrolysis (a high-energy process) and renewable energy sources is a high-cost option, accounting for only about 5% of total H2 production.

Today, the vast majority of global hydrogen production comes from fossil fuel sources (methane gas reform) and will continue to do so for several decades. However, as the manufacturing capacity of more efficient and profitable electrolyzers increases, production costs are expected to decrease significantly along with the deployment of maturing renewable energy generation technologies and capacities.

Hydrogen fuel

cells are more efficient than many other energy sources, including many green energy solutions. This fuel efficiency allows for the production of more energy per pound of fuel.

For example, a conventional combustion-based power plant generates electricity with an efficiency of 33 to 35%, compared to up to 65% for hydrogen fuel cells. The same applies to vehicles, where hydrogen fuel cells use between 40 and 60% of fuel energy and, at the same time, offer a 50% reduction in fuel consumption. Hydrogen fuel cells offer greater efficiency in terms of use times. A hydrogen vehicle has the same range as those using fossil fuels (about 300 miles).

This is higher than what is currently offered by electric vehicles (EVs), which are increasingly being developed with fuel cell power units as “range amplifiers”. Hydrogen fuel cells are also not significantly affected by the outside temperature and do not deteriorate when it's cold, unlike electric vehicles. This advantage is further increased when combined with short load times. There are also barriers surrounding regulatory issues related to the framework that defines commercial deployment models.

Without clear regulatory frameworks that allow commercial projects to understand their cost and revenue base, commercial projects may struggle to make a financial investment decision (FID). Hydrogen is a highly flammable fuel source, posing understandable safety concerns. Hydrogen gas burns in air at concentrations ranging from 4 to 75%. Hydrogen is a perfectly clean fuel, because the only waste it produces is water vapor.

In its free state it is made up of two atoms (H) that, when combined with oxygen (O) during use (combustion or, more commonly, in a fuel cell), generate water (H2O). Hydrocarbons, on the other hand, are composed of carbon and hydrogen and, during combustion, when combined with oxygen, produce carbon dioxide (CO) and other wastes harmful to the environment and human health (oxides of nitrogen and sulfur). The combustion engine, launched in the mid-19th century and never abandoned since then, allows the car to move thanks to the combustion between fuel and air, which is converted into thermal energy and, in turn, into mechanical energy. In almost 200 years, this engine has achieved maximum performance and optimization and is currently no longer sustainable due to the strong environmental impact of the waste produced.

On the contrary, the hydrogen combustion engine uses technology that stands out for the absence of harmful emissions. However, its main use is not in the combustion engine but in a fuel cell, developed for space exploration since the 1960s, through which an electrochemical process combines hydrogen and oxygen to generate electrical energy, which in turn powers an efficient electric motor. An advantage of hydrogen fuel cells is their storage capacity. This feature makes them an essential resource for critical energy supplies and emergency situations that need reliable long-term energy.

Because hydrogen is environmentally friendly, it can be used in ways that other fuels can't even match. Hydrogen fuel cells have the potential to reduce a country's dependence on fossil fuels, which will help democratize energy and energy supplies around the world. Because the technology doesn't require any mechanical systems, hydrogen fuel cells are more reliable than traditional engines and batteries. Hydrogen fuel cells do not generate greenhouse gas emissions like fossil fuel sources, reducing pollution and improving air quality as a result.

Hydrogen fuel cells may be a zero-emission technology, but that doesn't necessarily make them a renewable energy source.

Hydrogen fuel cell

technology, on the other hand, is a process that transforms chemical energy into electrical energy. With almost zero emissions, hydrogen fuel cells release no greenhouse gases, meaning they don't have a carbon footprint while in use. While some operations produce hydrogen fuel using renewable energy, most of the supply depends on fossil fuels for their production.

Hydrogen fuel has no hazardous by-products, and the use of hydrogen fuel cells is more environmentally friendly than gasoline or natural gas. Unlike traditional fuel sources, hydrogen fuel technology is extremely quiet, making it more popular in situations where noise is especially of concern. While a combustion engine operates at an efficiency level of 25%, hydrogen fuel cells are more than 80% efficient. Not including the carbon involved in its production, the life cycle of hydrogen fuel is zero-emission.

Hydrogen fuel cells need investments to develop to the point of becoming a truly viable source of energy. . .