ENGR 101/HUM 200: Technology and Society

October 25, 2005

Agenda

• The Hydrogen Economy

• Innovative Designs (video segment)

• Hand back exams

Hydrogen Fuel v. Hydrogen Economy

• Changes in energy sources have broad economic consequences

• Energy is a key input into our economy

• The current worldwide economy is dominated by fossil fuels

• Energy fuels economic growth

• Infrastructure is shaped by energy needs

• Energy is infrastructure

Replace or Enable?

• Replacement technology– Replaces an existing product

• Electric vs. gas light

– New product must cost less

• Enabling technology– Provides a new capability

• Airplanes and flight

– Cost not as important

Consider the technology for “Make it Better”

Fuel Cells Replace and Enable

• Energy efficiency is about replacing a technology

• Providing environmental protections (whether or not in response to regulations) is about enabling a technology

Hydrogen Replaces and Enables

• If it increases efficiency of ICEs, that is replacement

• If it creates a decentralized energy infrastructure, that is enabling

Hydrogen Economy

• Network of three functional steps– Production– Storage– Use

• But where does hydrogen come from?– Lots of it, but not in the right form for use as a

fuel

• Not just a fuel, but an infrastructure

Challenges Posed by H.E.

• Competitive production

• Distribution

• Storage

• Safety

Why Hydrogen?

• Need replacement for fossil fuels– Energy independence, pricing, worldwide stores

• Environmental regulations (Clean Air Act, CA’s zero emission standards)

• Hydrogen is viewed as clean, renewable energy source

• Hydrogen is also an energy carrier for renewable energy sources (stores, moves, and delivers energy in a usable form to consumers)

Some economic drivers:

• Automobile manufacturers looking for good fuel match for fuel cell technology

• Governor of California initiated Hydrogen Highway Project– 150-200 stations along state highways– 500K each– One step in chicken-egg dilemma

Where does hydrogen come from?

• Introduction of hydrogen as an energy source for fuel cells doesn’t necessarily mean no use of fossil fuels

• Hydrogen is produced from: – natural gas, coal, gasoline, methanol, or biomass

through the application of heat (“reforming”)– from bacteria or algae through photosynthesis– using electricity or sunlight to split water into

hydrogen and oxygen.

Fossil Fuels

• Not renewable• Reserves will eventually run out

– Some debate on when; modes of extraction becoming more complex, more expensive

• Prices are rising even now• By 2050, there will be a 50% increase in

energy use worldwide– Population growth– Industrialization of developing countries

Current Energy Sources

• Oil supplies 40% of the world’s energy needs

• Oil accounts for 90% of energy used for transportation

• Cars & trucks produce 10% of carbon dioxide emissions in the US

• Power plants produce more than 40% of carbon dioxide in US

Fuel Cells and Hydrogen

• Hydrogen fuel should not be confused with fuel cell technology– In order to use hydrogen as a fuel, it still needs to be ‘liberated’

from somewhere, and that takes energy

• Hydrogen fuel can be used to power ICEs as well as fuel cells

• Fuel cells are more efficient than either ICEs or batteries (can be constantly replenished: open v closed system)

• ICE standards of longevity: 15 years or 170K miles• Current PEM (proton exchange membrane) fuel cells:

2000 hours

Fuel Cells in development

• Fuel cells as batteries for consumer electronics

• Canon’s announcement 10/25 that it has developed fuel cells to replace conventional batteries for digital cameras and printers in 3 years

• Have to find way to provide consumers with fuel

Some work being done at UW

• http://depts.washington.edu/fuelcell/Info/FAQ/FAQ.htm

• http://faculty.washington.edu/stuve/uwess/uwess.htm

• http://faculty.washington.edu/cooperjs/Definitions/design_for_environment.htm

• http://faculty.washington.edu/cooperjs/Definitions/life_cycle_assessment.htm– “Life cycle assessment is a protocol to assess the

environmental, economic, and social impacts of an industrial system”

What Interrupts the Optimistic Narrative?

Hydrogen fuel burns clean but hydrogen fuel production is dirty

• Hydrogen is not an energy source like oil, coal, wind or sun but an energy carrier like electricity or gasoline

• But, the only byproduct from burning hydrogen in an ICE or a fuel cell is water

Likely Early Adopter Industries

• For hydrogen as a fuel– Not cars

• Difficulty manufacturing in advance of sufficient consumer demand

• Fuel companies unlikely to invest in infrastructure (filling stations) till a critical mass of cars

• For fuel cells– Battery replacements– Infrastructure elements that are looking for

decentralization

Some Public Policy Issues

• Infrastructure for developing countries– A “hydrogen economy would democratize energy

generation so that all nations can have equal access to the benefits of electricity.” The Futurist

• Values – Shift required for an energy policy that promotes

energy independence based on diverse sources of cleaner energy, combined with tough emission standards, and conservation effort

• Safety– Hindenberg misconception; hydrogen fires not easily

detectable (odorless, colorless gas)

Next class

• Guest lecture: Prof John Kramlich

• Read The Diamond Age