As the price of fossil fuel based energy will continue to rise, the demand for other sources of power will also increase. Fortunately the alternative is available: renewable sources such as wind, solar and geothermal power are abundantly present all around the globe. However, two major hurdles will have to be overcome.

The first problem is that we are still learning how to harness renewable sources efficiently. Although wind turbines have certainly developed into viable power generators and hydro power plants are indeed highly productive, solar panels are still far too expensive to become a serious alternative to oil and natural gas for the mass production of electrical energy. Yet solar power is the largest source of energy; on every square meter of the earth's surface falls enough sunlight to provide one household with all the energy demanded.

All we need to do is learn how to capture this vast resource.

The second problem with renewable sources is the fact that they are not always there, when or where you need them. For instance, the Sahara desert in northern Africa receives enough solar energy to provide all of Europe with all the energy needed. Yet, even if we could capture it all (which we can't, of course), we would still need to transport the energy to where it is needed.

Also, most countries around the North Sea such as the UK and the Netherlands for example, have plenty of wind blowing across their surfaces that could be harnessed. However, most of it blows during the day while demand for energy peaks during the night. All we need to do, is store the daytime energy, and use it at night. Up until now however, we couldn't.

Enter hydrogen. Hydrogen presents the first real possibility to store energy at a mass scale. The stored energy can then be saved for a later time, or transported to where it is needed.

This has never been possible before. All electrical energy consumed by you right now, was produced a fraction of a second ago at a power plant. And when you turn on the coffee machine ten minutes from now, that power plant will simply have to work a little bit harder. It may sound bizarre, but it really is that simple. Because hydrogen allows us to store energy, the constant balance between demand and production becomes a lot less critical, and therefor a lot less fragile.

Hydrogen can be made out of regular water using electricity through a rather simple process. The electricity generated by a wind turbine or solar panel can thus be used to create hydrogen. This hydrogen can then be stored or transported for later use. So an autumn afternoon storm can generate energy needed to illuminate living rooms later that evening, thanks to hydrogen.

We believe strongly in this 'renewable hydrogen energy' because it is clean, independent of fossil fuels. It can be used both at a very small and at mass scale and no natural resources are depleted. Even the water used to make the hydrogen, returns as water vapor when hydrogen is used to produce electricity. It's a perfect cycle.

Qurrent provides systems and solutions allowing both house owners and businesses to tap into this new energy.

Frequent technological breakthroughs will rapidly lower the cost of hydrogen fuel cells and peripheral devices, making renewable hydrogen energy cost effective. However, and this moment it is not. Intermediate solutions aimed to provide competitive energy are therefore still necessary. But they are always carefully selected with the hydrogen future in mind, allowing our customers to stay Qurrent. Now, and in the future.

:: Food for thought

:: Relevant links
Fuel Cell Today
Fuel Cell Europe
Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Investor
Fuel cell animation
Fuel cell today education kit