Renewable Energy and the Hydrogen Economy

Krishnan Rajeshwar,1 Robert McConnell,2 Kevin Harrison,2 and Stuart Licht3 

and natural gas have powered cars, trucks, power plants, and factories, causing a relatively recent and dramatic buildup of greenhouse gases in the atmos- 

Ice core samples from Vostok, Antarctic, look back over 400,000 years before present at atmospheric CO2 levels by examining the composition of air bubbles trapped in the polar ice buried over 3623 m (11,886 ft) deep.5 These data show that the range of CO2 concentrations over this time period have been relatively stable, cycling between about 180 and 300 parts per million by volume (ppmv). According to the World Meteorological Organization the CO2 concentration in 2005 reached an unprecedented 379.1 ppmv.6 

This book examines the salient aspects of a hydrogen economy, particularly within the context of a renewable, sustainable energy system. 

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Past experience shows that as the equipment needed for new technologies starts to be mass produced, its prices drop. The cost of wind power-generated electricity has already been reduced to one quarter of that of the first installations. An ultrathin-film solar collector manufacturer (Nanosolar) claims that it will soon market collectors at costs that are severalfold less expensive than today s PV prices. We do not know if that particular claim is correct or not, but we know that time is on our side. Therefore, it is realistic to expect that as markets expand, the costs of mass-produced renewable energy devices will also drop and the cost of transition to a solar-hydrogen economy over several decades will become not only affordable, but will also create jobs and an economic boom. We should remember that drastic changes can occur rapidly after all, a century ago electricity was a luxury that only 3% of the households had. The same will occur with renewable energy over the 21st century. 

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