How Is Hydrogen Power Made?
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A Little Chemistry Goes a Long Way
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Chemistry is the best way to describe how hydrogen power is made. You see evidence of how it works every day. A car engine is a good example of how people can convert chemicals to energy, a regular battery is another. When you put gas into a car, for example, the engine converts the liquid portion of the gasoline, essentially into gas vapors. These vapors have very powerful properties. They can push machine parts inside an engine that, in turn, make other corresponding parts of the engine work. Batteries come equipped with chemicals inside, and they can lose energy rather quickly. Hydrogen power works in much the same way and it is pollution-free.
What Is Hydrogen?
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Hydrogen is an odorless gas and an extremely abundant element in the universe. Much like everything else, it is comprised of positively and negatively charged particles or parts---protons and electrons. According to periodic law, elements like hydrogen act systematically. The periodic table arranges these elements according to their atomic features, and behavior, so to speak. Elements in this table also appear in groups; hydrogen is at the top-left portion of the periodic table, as it is very powerful and highly reactive. In contrast, elements that appear at the right side of the table are inert. This means they are generally stable and least reactive.
Hydrogen power is created by inducing chemical reactions. Fuel cells are a primary tool to making this happen. Using a catalyst and chemical source, like the molecules in water for example, people can manipulate hydrogen molecules. The subsequent chemical reactions from this makes gases---the same way a car engine can change gasoline into vapors, a fuel cell utilizes water or other substances to make hydrogen power via diffusion.
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Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Power
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The interior of a fuel cell has material membranes that are designed to behave much the same way a human cell does. After exciting protons and electrons with chemical reactions, diffusion takes place. Diffusion is term that describes a way that nature tries to balance chemical reactions---making two sides of a variable essentially equal. You have to separate the protons from the electrons to make hydrogen power. The electrons are funneled into a circuit inside a fuel cell, while the protons are stored to use a bit later---when the oxygen meets with electricity. All this action causes a lot of energy to be released in the form of heat. The interesting thing about fuel cells is people can make a huge amount of energy with very little effort with them.
Catalyst for Hydrogen Power
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To make hydrogen power, you need oxygen and something to kick-start both the electrons and protons in the hydrogen molecules. The amount of energy you can derive afterward depends on the material used to do this. Scientists want a stable substance to produce the most power possible. Most researchers agree that a good catalyst for making hydrogen power is rhodium. It is another chemical element appearing in the periodic table, but it is quite expensive.
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