Welcome to DU! The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards. Join the community: Create a free account Support DU (and get rid of ads!): Become a Star Member Latest Breaking News General Discussion The DU Lounge All Forums Issue Forums Culture Forums Alliance Forums Region Forums Support Forums Help & Search

multigraincracker

(32,736 posts)
Mon Jul 24, 2023, 07:11 PM Jul 2023

Hidden hydrogen Does Earth hold vast stores of a renewable, carbon-free fuel?

Way to costly to produce, there may be vast underground stores of hydrogen. If true it could solve our energy problems.

https://www.science.org/content/article/hidden-hydrogen-earth-may-hold-vast-stores-renewable-carbon-free-fuel

Bourakébougou, Mali, to drill for water, but had given up on one dry borehole at a depth of 108 meters. “Meanwhile, wind was coming out of the hole,” Konaré told Denis Brière, a petrophysicist and vice president at Chapman Petroleum Engineering, in 2012. When one driller peered into the hole while smoking a cigarette, the wind exploded in his face.

“He didn’t die, but he was burned,” Konaré continued. “And now we had a huge fire. The color of the fire in daytime was like blue sparkling water and did not have black smoke pollution. The color of the fire at night was like shining gold, and all over the fields we could see each other in the light. … We were very afraid that our village would be destroyed.”

It took the crew weeks to snuff out the fire and cap the well. And there it sat, shunned by the villagers, until 2007. That was when Aliou Diallo, a wealthy Malian businessman, politician, and chair of Petroma, an oil and gas company, acquired the rights to prospect in the region surrounding Bourakébougou. “We have a saying that human beings are made of dirt, but the devil is made of fire,” Diallo says. “It was a cursed place. I said, ‘Well, cursed places, I like to turn them into places of blessing.’”

6 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight: NoneDon't highlight anything 5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies
Hidden hydrogen Does Earth hold vast stores of a renewable, carbon-free fuel? (Original Post) multigraincracker Jul 2023 OP
So, only half kidding... ret5hd Jul 2023 #1
How amazing would it be if Mali holds the key to the solution to the worlds climate crisis. honest.abe Jul 2023 #2
If there are vast stores of hydrogen stored in the ground, which must be produced... OKIsItJustMe Jul 2023 #3
One theory is that the multigraincracker Jul 2023 #5
OK, I've read the article... OKIsItJustMe Jul 2023 #6
This is exciting.... Think. Again. Jul 2023 #4

ret5hd

(20,534 posts)
1. So, only half kidding...
Mon Jul 24, 2023, 07:23 PM
Jul 2023

we melt all the icecaps, raising the sea level, then we add more water? Do I got that right?

honest.abe

(8,685 posts)
2. How amazing would it be if Mali holds the key to the solution to the worlds climate crisis.
Mon Jul 24, 2023, 07:35 PM
Jul 2023

Last edited Mon Jul 24, 2023, 08:08 PM - Edit history (1)

Mali is one of the poorest countries on Earth with many serious political and national security issues.

Lets hope the country's hydrogen reserves are not unfairly exploited.

OKIsItJustMe

(19,938 posts)
3. If there are vast stores of hydrogen stored in the ground, which must be produced...
Mon Jul 24, 2023, 08:15 PM
Jul 2023

… it would not qualify as "renewable" any more than oil is “renewable.”

Hydrogen is only considered "renewable" because it can be generated from water, using electricity from renewable sources.

OKIsItJustMe

(19,938 posts)
6. OK, I've read the article...
Mon Jul 24, 2023, 10:49 PM
Jul 2023
It is still early days for natural hydrogen. Scientists don’t completely understand how it forms and migrates and—most important—whether it accumulates in a commercially exploitable way. “Interest is growing fast, but the scientific facts are still lacking,” says Frédéric-Victor Donzé, a geophysicist at Grenoble Alpes University. …


As tantalizing as it may be, we are a l-o-n-g way from a new economy based on “natural hydrogen.” Assuming it does exist in sufficient quantities, it’s too bad this didn’t come to light decades ago…

Think. Again.

(8,540 posts)
4. This is exciting....
Mon Jul 24, 2023, 08:16 PM
Jul 2023

But I disagree with your opinion that Hydrogen is "Way to costly to produce".

Yes, as a relatively new industry, the production of Green Hydrogen still has to scale up in supply and demand to find the bottom of it's production costs, but most predictions see the cost of hydrogen comparable to gasoline within five years due to those economies of scale:

Hydrogen fuel could be as cheap as gas in 5 years, study finds
CNET
Sean Szymkowski
June 9, 2020 1:17 p.m.
From: https://www.cnet.com/roadshow/news/cheap-gas-hydrogen-fuel-cost-study/

-snip-
"As the automotive industry looks away from the tried-and-true internal-combustion engine, two paths appear. One is a future of electric cars and oodles of charging stations. The second, seemingly less likely path, is the road to hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles.

While EVs are definitely the favorite, hydrogen fuel cells have their own advantages, such as much longer ranges. And if a study from the California Energy Commission (PDF) holds weight, hydrogen fuel to power fuel-cell vehicles could be about the same price as gasoline in just five years."
-snip-


And that was written BEFORE the Inflation Reduction Act:

From: https://ellerstoncapital.com/news/inflation-reduction-act-implications-for-hydrogen/

Inflation Reduction Act: Implications for Hydrogen

-snip-
"Unsubsidized green hydrogen production costs in the US today are $2.60-3.75/kg and will reach $1.91-2.82/kg by 2025 and $1.44-2.25/kg by 2030, at best-in-class renewable sites before accounting for transportation related costs.

The Inflation Reduction Act will enable clean hydrogen production facilities to earn a $3/kg production tax credit (PTC) adjusted for inflation. Modelling by Morgan Stanley estimates that with this PTC, green hydrogen costs could reach less than $1/kg, making it competitive against grey and blue hydrogen which will enable adoption in hard to decarbonise industrial sectors. Companies that will benefit most directly from the Act are those with electrolyzer and hydrogen production capabilities. Similarly, traditional energy majors are well positioned to scale their investment in clean hydrogen production."
-snip-
Latest Discussions»Issue Forums»Environment & Energy»Hidden hydrogen Does Ear...