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Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science
The Future Looks Green Ontario Tech: A university in its element on hydrogen energy research
Ontario tech helping chart Canada’s path forward on clean and green energy alternatives. Canada is facing a watershed moment on its energy future. Ask Canadians what they think about the balance between traditional fossil fuels and the development of renewable energy sources, and you’re bound to get a variety of hard-held opinions. In the ‘Energy Crisis’ days nearly a half-century ago, Canada and much of the world faced a sudden shortage of petroleum and endured escalating energy prices. With economies, industries and consumers ever more reliant on uninterrupted sources of energy, efforts to conserve fossil fuels began. But securing supply and saving money wasn’t the only objective. The ongoing combustion of hydrocarbons still generates enormous amounts of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, contributing to poor air quality, environmental health issues and elevated global temperatures. This in turn has driven 13
glacial melting and rising sea levels. Yet, here we are in 2021. Canadian news is full of stories about the merits of oil pipelines, people arguing about climate change, and politicians debating how to put a price on carbon emissions.
Where do we go from here? According to a recent Senate Energy Committee report (‘Decarbonizing Transportation in Canada’), about 85 per cent of Canada’s 24 million road vehicles still run on gasoline or diesel. Government efforts to implement a carbon-pricing plan (opponents brand it a carbon ‘tax’) to subsidize the development of green energy solutions continue to face stiff headwinds from the oil and gas sector and many consumers. The world’s thirst for energy hasn’t changed after all these years. If anything, energy demand is still growing, especially in developing countries. The question is, will future energy supplies be able to meet global demand?
We know that fossil fuel supplies will ultimately be unsustainable at some point in the future. We know that hydrocarbon combustion contributes to greenhouse gas emissions and influences climate change. The logical next step to ensuring a sustainable future is the development of new options for low-cost renewable energy sources like hydrogen, nuclear, solar, wind and biomass. Hydrogen could also be used to reduce carbon emissions in the oil and gas sector.
Ontario Tech University: At the forefront of clean energy research As it approaches its 20th anniversary as a vital central-Canadian hub of research excellence and innovation,
Learn more about Hydrogen Research at Ontario Tech engineering.ontariotechu.ca
