Hydrogen is the most abundant of the chemical elements, constituting roughly 75% of the universe’s elemental mass. As far as our energy choices go, choosing to burn fossil fuels almost exclusively for the last century and a half has brought tremendous development and opportunities, but it has not been without consequences. Hydrogen may be produced from water using the process of electrolysis, but this process is presently significantly more expensive commercially than hydrogen production from natural gas.

Some Facts About Hydrogen You May Not Have Known
By D. Michael Kirby

Hydrogen is abundant. Actually, it’s the most abundant element there is. About 75 percent of the universe is made of hydrogen. It’s also the third most abundant element on Earth, as it’s found in water and all organic matter.

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Despite its history, hydrogen gas is safe. In 1937, Spectators at a New Jersey airfield discovered — to their horror — that hydrogen is flammable, as the airship Hindenburg exploded. Despite the fact that hydrogen is less flammable than gasoline, it can be dangerous in large amounts, particularly if it’s encased in the flammable material that made up the Hindenburg’s inflatable segment. Modern blimps have switched to helium.

When we finally head out to other planets in our solar system, we’ll have a near-unlimited supply of hydrogen gas. All four of the outer planets (Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune; everything past the asteroid belt) have abundant hydrogen gas in their atmospheres.

Pure hydrogen gas doesn’t exist on Earth.. Well, not in any of the parts of Earth most of us have access to. Even though it’s the most abundant element in the universe, and it’s a gas in its most common form, hydrogen gas on Earth only exists on the highest layers of the atmosphere, because it’s so light.

Hydrogen might be the future of alternative fuels. Economists and scientists use the term “hydrogen economy” to describe the time when a substantial amount of our energy needs will be met by hydrogen.

Hydrogen is good for gardening. Along with helium, it’s one of the two primary elements the sun uses to create heat and light. That’ll help your petunias grow.

Hydrogen doesn’t pollute. The only emission created by a hydrogen fuel cell car is water.

Hydrogen is simple. With just one proton and one electron, it’s actually the simplest element on the periodic table.

Power and Energy is one of the nation’s premier providers of hydrogen technology, leading the way to the hydrogen economy with patented hydrogen purification and membrane separation technologies.

Find out more about Power and Energy’s contribution to the alternative energy landscape here: http://www.powerandenergy.com/

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