INGENIEUR
Hydrogen Based Economy –
Are We Ready?
By Assoc. Prof. Dr Anwar Johari,
Dr Mimi Haryani Hassim
Institute of Future Energy, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia
T
he Hydrogen Economy refers to the use of
hydrogen in delivering energy. The elements
of a hydrogen based economy are similar to
that of the conventional fossil fuel based systems
where issues such as production of hydrogen,
deliver y, storage, conversion technolog y,
applications of such systems, safety issues,
codes and standards dominate the feasibility and
sustainability of the hydrogen based economy.
The vision of Hydrogen Economy stems from the
need for clean energy, which is energy that does
not pollute the environment. The concept has
been around for quite some time but has been
hampered mostly by economic reasons and
relatively little understanding of the benefits of
this system. It took decades for the transition from
a coal based energy system to the current fossil
fuel based one and it is expected that the scenario
will not be much different for the hydrogen based
economy.
The world’s energy landscape is now in
transition from a carbon based system to a
hydrogen based economy. Leading the way is
Japan with its ambitious plans and vision for the
creation of a Hydrogen Society. Such a transition
requires appropriate planning and solid support
from policy makers, public and industry players.
Hydrogen and fuel cells are seen as the key
solutions to the world’s growing concerns about
energy security, energy supply and environmental
issues especially greenhouse gas emissions.
Malaysia is blessed with a large amount of
fossil fuel reserves and it will still remain the
dominant energy source for some time to come.
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JUNE 2013
Nonetheless, efforts in securing other sources
of energy, particularly renewable energy, are on-
going and actively supported by many Government
policies. Hydrogen economy comes into the
picture by providing a sense of security to the
nation’s energy mix. The Government has also
committed to a 40% reduction in the emission
of greenhouse gases by 2020 compared to
the levels in 2005. The use of hydrogen in fuel-
cell systems has proven to be a source of clean
technology where the system converts chemical
energy from hydrogen rich fuels into electrical
power and only emits water as its by-product.
The technology has been commercially available
but its use is not widespread due to economic
consideration, lack of infrastructure and public
awareness. Nevertheless, it suits the aspirations
of the Government despite the need for a strategic
roadmap and the long haul transition to a hydrogen
economy and to minimise any disruption to the
existing eco-system.
The economic point of view is always the
deciding factor in any business venture. The
production of large quantities of hydrogen for the
purposes of transportation and power generation
via fuel-cell technology is a very challenging task.
In Malaysia, the commercial application of fuel
cells in transportation and power generation
is non-existent except in some small scale
demonstration projects by local universities.
Hydrogen itself does not exist naturally but is
produced from other sources like biomass and
fossil fuels in a steam reforming process and
also by splitting water through electrolysis.