Greta Stacy is a high school science teacher in Doha, Qatar. She has previously taught in Ecuador and the United States.
Teaching about hydrogen fuel is an important part of studying fuel cells in upper-level science courses. Fuel cells can be a challenging topic for students, and this lesson will help them understand and stay engaged with hydrogen energy and its role in addressing climate change. The social and economic feasibility of hydrogen fuel could also be considered in economics or social studies classes. Students can engage with the case study of sustainable air travel in order to consider these important questions.
Written By: MIT Environmental Solutions Initiative
The MIT Climate Change Engagement Program, a part of MIT Climate HQ, provides the public with nonpartisan, easy-to-understand, and scientifically-grounded information on climate change and its solutions.
Hydrogen is the lightest chemical element and the most abundant chemical substance in the universe. Using fossil fuels or clean electricity, we can produce hydrogen gas, which can be stored, transported, and burned to provide power. Unlike most fuels, hydrogen does not produce the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide (CO2) when burned: instead, it yields water. This means that burning hydrogen fuel does not contribute to climate change.
The versatility of hydrogen fuel creates many opportunities to replace fossil fuels in different parts of our economy. It can provide long-term energy storage for the electric power sector, fuel for heavy duty transportation, and heat for industrial processes requiring high temperatures, like steel or concrete production. Today, hydrogen is mainly used in the petrochemical, food processing, and fertilizer industries, and in cars with hydrogen fuel cells. Countries such as Japan are exploring its use in public transportation.
For the climate, not all hydrogen is created equal
Because pure hydrogen is so rare on Earth, the hydrogen we use must be produced from other compounds. However, hydrogen production can have a large environmental impact depending on how it is produced. Today, close to 95 percent of hydrogen production is from fossil fuels like natural gas and coal. As a result, we emit 830 million tonnes of CO2 each year to produce 74 million tonnes of hydrogen.
