Hydrogen Energy Background, Significance and Future

In a world faced with massive and ever-growing energy demands where the environment is an important factor, an array of new technologies and or fuels are becoming a necessity, not a choice. Hydrogen may be one of those alternatives. Hydrogen can be produced from diverse domestic feedstocks using a variety of process technologies. Hydrogen-containing compounds such as, fossil fuels, biomass or even water can be a source of hydrogen. Thermochemical processes can be used to produce hydrogen from biomass and from fossil fuels such as coal, natural gas and petroleum. Power generated from sunlight, wind and nuclear sources can be used to produce hydrogen electrolytically. Sunlight alone can also drive photolytic production of hydrogen from water, using advanced photoelectrochemical and photobiological processes.