Hydrogen is an environmentally friendly energy carrier. As a fuel for the fuel cells, there are no emissions other than clean water. Fuel cells electrochemically convert hydrogen and oxygen into water, and electricity is generated in this process. Hydrogen is also a flexible energy carrier that can be used in combustion engines with minimal emissions. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Hydrogen is the simplest and smallest element we have. It is therefore so easy that there is no free nature. Other energy carriers such as oil or wood can be found in nature. Hydrogen must therefore be prepared from hydrogen-containing raw materials such as gas or water. Because hydrogen can be produced relatively easily from a variety of different feedstocks and by many different methods, many countries' dependence on oil can be reduced. Germany, Japan and the United States are the main consumers of imported fossil energy. These countries are leaders in the development of hydrogen-based transportation technologies. Dependence on oil, combined with the potential for business development and environmental improvement, is the main motivation for investing in hydrogen as an energy carrier worldwide. Normal petrol engines can be converted to hydrogen operation, but internal combustion engines have low efficiency. The highly developed combustion engine uses only 20-30% of the energy contained in the fuel. With today's technology a hydrogen fuel cell already has an equivalent efficiency of over 50% and the theoretical possibility of a much higher energy utilization rate. It also develops airplanes and trains that use hydrogen as fuel. Other uses Hydrogen will be increasingly used in stationary turbines and fuel cell power plants. In many fields, hydrogen together with fuel cells will replace the use of batteries. Hydrogen can also be used in most areas where a burner gas is used. Today, hydrogen is mainly produced from natural gas where the gas is used or is a residual product of various industries. Of today's world production of approx. This is approximately 500 billion Nm3 H2 (standard cubic meter). 90% from fossil material and approx. four percent from the electrolysis of water. The largest consumers of hydrogen are the oil and fertilizer industries. About half of the world's production is produced from natural gas through steam reforming. In this process, natural gas is supplied with water vapor at 1100°C, the process also produces CO2 which must then be cleaned and settled. Please note: this is just a sample. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Get Custom EssayHydrogen produced from fossil materials will be the least expensive source of hydrogen for a while. This production generates large amounts of CO2, but spot emissions from large manufacturing plants are easier to clean and deposit than cleaning up many small emissions (for example from gasoline-powered cars).