Why not try hydrogen as a fuel?

STANLEY ROBINSON

Special to the Post-Telegraph

KANSAS CITY Currently there is a universal quest for clean energy. We need a new fuel source to run our internal combustion engines (ICE). Most transportation, construction, and farming enterprises rely on ICEs to power their machines and equipment. More consideration should be given hydrogen as that fuel.

At a young age we learned about the industrial revolution and how steam engines powered the equipment that made many modern marvels possible. Coal powered the boilers that produced the steam. This industrial revolution started in England and soon London was so engulfed by coal smoke that people were dying of respiratory ailments.

We also learned of smog in Los Angeles causing respiratory problems, and we learned of rivers catching fire in Ohio. Coal-fired power plants in the Midwest were emitting sulfur that fell as acid rain, killing vast stretches of forests in the eastern United States. Waste byproducts created by the production and burning of fossil fuels is a major problem that we are currently seeking to remedy.

Internal combustion engines are the primary power source for today’s work. Fossil fuel currently powers the world for the most part, and the accompanying waste byproducts are what we are trying to eliminate.

There are advantages to the use of fossil fuels as energy and they are easily listed. Knowledge in their use is probably number one simply because we have been using them for many years. Methods of producing fossil fuels and their delivery is well known and constitutes

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a huge industry. The infrastructure is in place for the storage and transportation of this energy to where and when it is needed. The disadvantages are also well known.

For the most part we are talking about electrical energy when we speak of clean energy. Clean energy being defined as nonpolluting power that will allow us to maintain our current lifestyle without destroying the earth. Few people have the courage to campaign against clean air and water.

The technology for the production of clean energy is well known. Some examples are solar, wind, geothermal, tidal, wave action, nuclear and there may be more. All are methods of producing electricity. Electricity is an excellent source of energy for stationary machinery. Electricity works well for heating and cooling our homes and for powering transportation in populated areas.

A major down side to clean electrical energy is that production is often a long distance from where it is needed.

Transportation and storage of electrical energy is a major hurdle. Cross country power transmission lines are expensive to build and often strongly resisted. Right of way procurement, construction, and maintenance adds a substantial cost to the final product.

Storage of any excess electrical energy for use at a later time is another major problem. Our current method of storage is by the use of batteries. The need for rare earth materials in battery production causes an additional assault on the earth and often requires doing busi- ness with our adversaries. Even the best batteries have limited power before needing recharged and that often requires extensive time. Small batteries for calculators, cell phones, hand tools and small tractors are common and very useful. Batteries for hard jobs such as large horsepower (100+) farm tractors, airplanes, bulldozers and other earth moving equipment add so much weight to the machine that they are impractical.

Kurt Coffey, vice president of Case IH North America says “If you’re talking about a 70 hp Farmall that runs four hours a day, the technology fits and that’s where you’ll see us go in the near term.” “A loader … used in yard applications where it stays there and has regular access to primary power, is the perfect application for electrification,” says Andrew Dargatz, product manager, CASE Construction Equipment.

John Deere’s chief technology officer Jahmy Hindman says Deere's findings show electrification could be a solution for lower horsepower units of 100 hp and under.

Electrical powered machines for large hard jobs do exist. “Big Brutus” the large electric powered shovel that worked extracting coal from southeast Kansas is an example. A huge cord from the generating plant directly to the machine provided the power for its operation.

Nuclear is also a method of electrical energy production. We have been powering submarines with atomic energy for years. The major drawback to atomic energy is the disposal of the associated waste that stays lethal for thousands of years.

See Hydrogen, Page 4