There is worldwide concern that the availability of oil will diminish within 20 or 30 years. (See, for example, Frank Kreith et al., Ground Transportation for the 21st Century, ASME Press, 2000.) In an effort to maintain the availability of a convenient fuel while at the same time reducing adverse environmental impact, some have suggested that in the future there will be a paradigm shift from oil to hydrogen as the primary fuel. Hydrogen, however, is not available in nature as is oil. Consequently, it must be produced by splitting water electrically or by producing it from a hydrogen-rich fuel. Moreover, to transport hydrogen, it has to be liquified and transported through pipelines to the location where it is needed. Prepare a preliminary assessment for the feasibility of a hydrogen fuel supply system.

As a first step, it is necessary to split water into hydrogen and oxygen. To do this, wind turbines will be used to generate electricity for the electrolytic separation of hydrogen and oxygen. This can be accomplished at a cost of $0.06/kWh in parts of the country that have adequate wind resources, such as, for example, North Dakota. Begin your thermal analysis by calculating the energy required to cool the gaseous hydrogen from a temperature of 30°C to a temperature at which it will become a liquid. Assume, for this estimate, that refrigeration can be achieved with a COP of approximately 50% of Carnot efficiency between appropriate temperature limits. Now that hydrogen is available as a liquid, estimate the heat loss from a pipe laid at a reasonable distance underground and insulated with cryogenic insulation in transporting the hydrogen from North Dakota to Chicago. Also estimate the pumping requirements of moving the hydrogen, assuming that suitable pumps with an overall efficiency of 65% are available. Once the liquified hydrogen has reached its destination, it must be stored in a suitable spherical container. Estimate the size of the container sufficient to supply approximately 100 MW of electric power in Chicago by means of a fuel cell that has an efficiency of 60%. The cost of the fuel cell is estimated to be about $5,000/kW. After having completed these estimates, prepare a brief analysis on whether or not a hydrogen economy appears to be technically and economically feasible. For some additional background on this problem,