Is hydrogen risky business? - Letters From Our Readers - Letter to the Editor

E: The Environmental Magazine, May-June, 2003 by Jim Bell

Using hydrogen gas to store intermittent renewable energy supplies sounds so wonderful, but the plans may be fatally flawed. This scenario may result in the loss of hydrogen to space through leaky pipes and storage containers and through incomplete combustion. I've talked with several experts, and they tell me that hydrogen gas will float out into space if released into the atmosphere because the Earth's gravity is not strong enough to hold it. If this hydrogen is derived from water, its loss means a reduction of planetary water.

Also, will the oxygen separated in the hydrogen economy increase the percentage of that gas in our atmosphere? If so, will fires be easier to start and harder to put out, will metals rust faster and will the oxidation of the organic materials in soil speed up?

There are many other ways to store intermittent renewable energy, so let's not let our legitimate quest to free ourselves from fossil fuels and nuclear power override our due diligence in charting an energy future that is truly life sustaining.

Jim Bell, San Diego, CA

Editor's Note: Although Bell's theory sounds plausible, basic science discounts it, says David J. Friedman, a senior analyst with the Union of Concerned Scientists Clean Vehicles Program. "The reason you don't find hydrogen in the atmosphere is that it doesn't like hanging out alone," he says. "It tries to combine, reacting with oxygen to form water vapor, for instance. Hydrogen is highly reactive, so it will turn into something else long before it presents any problems. Fleets of hydrogen-powered cars won't affect our water supply."