Hydrogen fuel cells could deplete ozone

New hydrogen fuel cells could help deplete the ozone layer because large amounts of leaked hydrogen would enter the stratosphere, according to researchers at the California Institute of Technology.

According to the report:

If hydrogen replaced fossil fuels completely, about 10 to 20 percent of the hydrogen would leak from pipelines, storage facilities, processing plants and fuel cells.

Resulting ozone depletion could be as much as eight percent.

However, with advanced warnings of problems, energy analysts could create a hydrogen energy infrastructure to reduce leaks and protect the ozone.

Nejat Veziroglu (International Association for Hydrogen Energy) says that hydrogen leakage will be much less than what the Cal Tech researchers estimate. Because hydrogen is a developing fuel technology, scientists aren't sure to what extent it will affect the environment. Some leaking hydrogen could be absorbed in the soil instead of the atmosphere.

Although hydrogen-fuelled cars are probably still decades away, President Bush has made hydrogen energy research a central part of his energy plan, and Congress has plans to appropriate more than $3 billion into research over the next five years.

Source: H. Josef Hebert, Group: Hydrogen Fuel Cells May Hurt Ozone, Associated Press, June 12, 2003.

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FMF Policy Bulletin/29 July 2003

Publish date: 05 August 2003
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The views expressed in the article are the author’s and are not necessarily shared by the members of the Foundation. This article may be republished without prior consent but with acknowledgement to the author.

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