One of the problems with solar/wind energy is that there is no easy way to store the energy produced. This means expensive, environment-destroying transmission lines have to be built from a solar / wind farm to the destination where the energy will ultimately be used. The opposite is true for nuclear, coal, & gas. Simply don’t burn the fuel, and it will remain unused indefinitely. You can store it as long as you want to and move it from place to place and release the energy to do work only when you need to.
So yeah… unfortunately wind and solar farms generate energy that has to be used immediately. You can store small amounts in traditional batteries, but there is no way you can store enough to power a whole city for a year.
Here’s my idea: Use the electrical energy from wind and solar farms to break up water via hydrolysis into oxygen and hydrogen. Release the oxygen into the air (I’m sure no one will complain that we’re "polluting" the air with life-giving oxygen!) and store the hydrogen. Yes, it’s a flammable gas but with today’s technology and safety devices, it can be safely stored and transported. Then, whenever you need energy, simply burn the hydrogen. Those of you who have taken Chem 101 know that the only "waste" product from burning hydrogen is 100% pure water.
It’s a win-win environmentally and energy-storage wise. There’s no need for toxic chemicals in batteries to store energy, and there’s no need to burn anything that creates smoke or other toxic waste products or pollution.
I’m sure I’m not the first one to think of this. So my question is… why isn’t my idea being implemented on a mass scale? What’s wrong with it?
