I realize i am probably going to be proved wrong howeverHydrogen fuel cells react hydrogen and Oxygen to produce energy fair enough. However they are being hailed as the future best form for all power needs, putting an end to the energy 'crisis'. But where is the hydrogen going to come from everyone ive asked had said it can be taken from water (H20) but surly this would require just as much energy as the reaction in the fuel cell would give out, due to the first law of thermodynamics, that energy is conserved. Am i missing something really simple or is this solution actually not solving anything?
You are correct about the point that the hydrogen needs to be generated using electricity generated from some other fuel source. The hydrogen fuel cell is merely a type of battery, and it must be charged. Too many people get this concept wrong. One of the main uses of hydrogen fuel cells will be the storage of energy for transportation as well as to store energy for general use. Wind farms and solar facilities that produce extra energy can save the extra energy in the form of hydrogen for later use in fuel cells.
Hydrogen gasoline cells is probably no longer the terrific thank you to run a automobile. A hydrogen on call for device could be simpler. The storage of hydrogen is risky once you get into an twist of destiny. Japan already has a automobile that runs on a hydrogen on call for device.
For electric powered cars, battery weight and storage capacity are problems. First use electricity to generate Hydrogen and Oxygen in a factory. Then combine them in a fuel cell to produce electricity in a car for motive power. To fill a car with Gasoline for 100 KMs travel, only 5 minutes are required. But to charge a battery for same distance travel, 8 hours of charge is required. But using HYDROGEN FUEL CELLS, Hydrogen cells can also be filled within 5 minutes.
Your intuition regarding the conservation of energy is exactly right. Hydrogen is not a plausible source of energy, because there are no vast reserves of hydrogen gas waiting for us to come and use it. The isolation of hydrogen inevitably requires more energy input than it could provide as output. Some people think hydrogen fuel cells might one day be a convenient means of storing and transporting energy in the future, but hydrogen will never solve the energy crisis by itself, because the energy has to come from somewhere else before it can be stored in the form of hydrogen.
