Why can't solar and wind energy be stored in hydrogen?
One of the problems with solar/wind energy is that there is no easy way to store the energy produced. This means expensive, environment-destroying tra...
One of the problems with solar/wind energy is that there is no easy way to store the energy produced. This means expensive, environment-destroying transmission lines have to be built from a solar / wind farm to the destination where the energy will ultimately be used. The opposite is true for nuclear, coal, & gas. Simply don’t burn the fuel, and it will remain unused indefinitely. You can store it as long as you want to and move it from place to place and release the energy to do work only when you need to.
So yeah… unfortunately wind and solar farms generate energy that has to be used immediately. You can store small amounts in traditional batteries, but there is no way you can store enough to power a whole city for a year.
Here’s my idea: Use the electrical energy from wind and solar farms to break up water via hydrolysis into oxygen and hydrogen. Release the oxygen into the air (I’m sure no one will complain that we’re "polluting" the air with life-giving oxygen!) and store the hydrogen. Yes, it’s a flammable gas but with today’s technology and safety devices, it can be safely stored and transported. Then, whenever you need energy, simply burn the hydrogen. Those of you who have taken Chem 101 know that the only "waste" product from burning hydrogen is 100% pure water.
It’s a win-win environmentally and energy-storage wise. There’s no need for toxic chemicals in batteries to store energy, and there’s no need to burn anything that creates smoke or other toxic waste products or pollution.
I’m sure I’m not the first one to think of this. So my question is… why isn’t my idea being implemented on a mass scale? What’s wrong with it?
I dont know. But, I imagine the problem is in the details. Have you worked them out? Is it cheaper than burning coal or gas or oil?
For example, I suspect turning water into O and H is expensive. It at least costs something. So if you add the cost to all the other costs of wind or solar, and it is more than coal gas or oil, it wont be used. Very simple, would you pay twice as much for you electricity just because its green? Maybe you would but most people wont. The market decides what is used. Coal gas oil is still the least expensive.
Possibly your idea is valid in remote areas like the north pole, so you need to work out the details to answer your question better. Is it practicle? For example, why not just pump water into a tank as a battery? It becomes unpracticle because of the size of tank, the pump etc.
Finally, how do you know your idea has been thought of? Guess you should do some research. Maybe you will answer your question. Maybe you will get rich.
It is an issue of energy density. Power per kilogram of fuel. Hydrogen is so light and fluffy, it is hard to compress it enough to make that energy density anywhere close to that of gasoline or diesel fuel. By the time you do get it compressed enough, now you have to cryogenically cool it, or it is at too high a pressure. All this compressing and cooling takes energy and equipment you just don’t need with other energy sources. Ultimately, it takes more energy than it is worth to make it economical.
Now, if you can figure out some kind of molecular sponge to absorb the hydrogen and then release it on demand at a high density, then you’ve got a game changing technology. People are working on this right now.
Kabam! http://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/hydrogen-a-dream-or-delusion/