For decades, we've been promised that a hydrogen economy is just around the corner: a high-tech Eden in which our cars, homes, and industries would be powered not by fossil fuels but by hydrogen from pollution-free sources. After billions in investment, hydrogen has failed to live up to these overblown promises. Yet it is as hyped as ever, a target of media enthusiasm and hefty investment from government and industry. Is it time to accept that the "fuel of the future" may never arrive?
In 2003, energy expert Joesph J. Romm wrote The Hype About Hydrogen to explain why hydrogen wasn't the panacea we were promised-and may never be. In this newly revised and updated edition, Romm builds an even stronger case, explaining the barriers hydrogen faces, from its inefficiency as an energy carrier to the "chicken-and-egg" problem in infrastructure development and the risk of increased global warming from hydrogen leaks and emissions. In a series of significant updates, Romm breaks down the latest methods of production, including "green" hydrogen, hydrogen made with nuclear power, geologic hydrogen, and "blue" hydrogen from natural gas with carbon capture and storage (CCS), laying out the challenges with each. He then explores the limitations of suggested applications of hydrogen, including e-fuels made with direct air capture of CO2, hydrogen cars, and heating in buildings and industry.
The Hype About Hydrogen is essential reading for anyone who hopes that hydrogen will be a major solution to the climate crisis. The good news? We don't need it to be. With advancements in renewables and battery technology, electrification offers us a path forward that is cleaner, safer-and can be implemented today. "
"This book should be of particular interest to anyone wanting to explore alternative energy sources to move away from fossil fuels. It provides comprehensive information about problems with hydrogen, including many references for further information."
" "There is no more relentless truth-teller in the climate movement than Joe Romm. But ultimately his message is optimistic: we have the tools to address the climate crisis today. And we can do so… as long as we don't get distracted by false gods."---Auden Schendler, SVP of Sustainability, Aspen One, author of "Terrible Beauty: Reckoning with Climate Complicity and Rediscovering Our Soul" "This is a must-read book for anyone who thinks a hydrogen economy is a better investment than an electrified one."---From the foreword by Saul Griffith, author of "Electrify: An Optimist's Playbook for Our Clean Energy Future"
