The Hydrogen Revolution: A Blueprint for the Future of Clean Energy
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- Create Date：2021-12-01 16:21:08
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：Marco Alverà
- ISBN：1541620410
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Summary
Named a Financial Times Best Book of 2021
An energy expert shows why hydrogen can fight climate change and become the fuel of the future
We’re constantly told that our planet is in crisis; that to save it， we must stop traveling， stop eating meat， even stop having children。 But in The Hydrogen Revolution， Marco Alverà argues that we don’t need to upend our lives。 We just need a new kind of fuel: hydrogen。 From transportation and infrastructure to heating and electricity， hydrogen could eliminate fossil fuels， boost economic growth， and encourage global action on climate change。 It could also solve the most bedeviling aspects of today’s renewable energy—from transporting and storing wind and solar energy and their vulnerability to weather changes to the inefficiency and limited utility of heavy， short-lasting batteries。
The Hydrogen Revolution isn’t just a manifesto for a powerful new technology。 It’s a hopeful reminder that despite the gloomy headlines about the fate of our planet， there’s still an opportunity to turn things around。
An energy expert shows why hydrogen can fight climate change and become the fuel of the future
We’re constantly told that our planet is in crisis; that to save it， we must stop traveling， stop eating meat， even stop having children。 But in The Hydrogen Revolution， Marco Alverà argues that we don’t need to upend our lives。 We just need a new kind of fuel: hydrogen。 From transportation and infrastructure to heating and electricity， hydrogen could eliminate fossil fuels， boost economic growth， and encourage global action on climate change。 It could also solve the most bedeviling aspects of today’s renewable energy—from transporting and storing wind and solar energy and their vulnerability to weather changes to the inefficiency and limited utility of heavy， short-lasting batteries。
The Hydrogen Revolution isn’t just a manifesto for a powerful new technology。 It’s a hopeful reminder that despite the gloomy headlines about the fate of our planet， there’s still an opportunity to turn things around。
Reviews
Paul
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Without ample energy we'd still be wrestling cave-bears for a place to sleep。 Now we know the side-effects of burning a million years of fossil fuels in a century will come back to bite us。 Hydrogen is much cleaner。 But historically hard to capture and handle。 So we cut powerlines through forests to bring Quebec hydro-power down to Boston， cover roofs with solar panels which may be an ongoing headache， and other patchwork energy gimmicks。 There are really only two commercial chemical fuels: Carb Without ample energy we'd still be wrestling cave-bears for a place to sleep。 Now we know the side-effects of burning a million years of fossil fuels in a century will come back to bite us。 Hydrogen is much cleaner。 But historically hard to capture and handle。 So we cut powerlines through forests to bring Quebec hydro-power down to Boston， cover roofs with solar panels which may be an ongoing headache， and other patchwork energy gimmicks。 There are really only two commercial chemical fuels: Carbon and Hydrogen。 Coal is dirty Carbon。 All other fuels are mixtures of Carbon with Hydrogen: more Carbon makes solid fuels like wood， more Hydrogen makes liquid and gaseous hydrocarbon fuels。 Marco Alverà left the investment world to focus attention on Hydrogen as a major element of a long-term energy policy。 Pure Hydrogen burns to water， far far fewer ill effects than Carbon Dioxide。 And Hydrogen is much less liable to carry impurities like Sulphur （Sulphur dioxide stinks and is toxic） or heavy metals like coal does。 Hydrogen burns easily in air to make heat or run engines。 It can 'burn' directly to electricity in a fuel cell， with no or few moving parts。 Unlike electricity， Hydrogen can be stored or transported in tanks as we wish， bridging time and space。 Stock-up summer sun for winter warmth。 Re-purpose the existing global fuel-gas transport （pipes， trucks， ships） to move energy around the world。 Marco explains all in a very easy-to read style， not getting bogged in technical details or convoluted logic。 The vision is seductive。 And essentially true。 If we don't bake or choke first， we will harness Hydrogen for our energy needs。 When？ Marco is self-convinced and has invested in the beginnings of this revolution。 I'm from Missouri， "Show me！" If nothing else， fossil fuels are SO widely ingrained in our lives that even a crash program can't convert us for decades。 And many other promising trends turned out to be too hard or， critically， just a wee bit too expensive。 Wind power was a very niche market （polder pumps and grain mills） for hundreds of years。 Millions have been sunk in Tide power over the last century， with little to show。 Is Hydrogen just around the corner， or just out of budgetary reach？ If you are at all interested in climate or energy， read this！ 。。。more
Ray Moon
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An Informative Advocacy for the Use of HydrogenWhen I first read the title， and then the description， my interest was piqued。 In 1985 while teaching Plebe （freshman） chemistry at the United States Naval Academy I devoted part of a lecture to using hydrogen as a green replacement to natural gas in homes and to power vehicles。 It can be produced in what now is called by a green process off the coast using solar energy for the destructive distillation of water into hydrogen and oxygen。 Existing nat An Informative Advocacy for the Use of HydrogenWhen I first read the title， and then the description， my interest was piqued。 In 1985 while teaching Plebe （freshman） chemistry at the United States Naval Academy I devoted part of a lecture to using hydrogen as a green replacement to natural gas in homes and to power vehicles。 It can be produced in what now is called by a green process off the coast using solar energy for the destructive distillation of water into hydrogen and oxygen。 Existing natural gas distribution with some modifications could be used to store， distribute， to homes。 Lastly， hydrogen is safer than any liquid petroleum fuel。 I pointed out that remember the terrible Hindenburg catastrophe; it took under a minute to be fully involved in flames， but 64% of the crew and passengers survived。 I asked if a full commercial aircraft that becomes fully involved in flames in less than a minute， would 64% of the passengers and crew survive？The question for you is， “First do you need an advanced degree in chemistry to understand this book？” No。 This book is about how urgently substituting hydrogen for natural gas and fossil fuels needs to be accomplished very soon。 Do you need an engineering degree to understand this aspect of the book。？ No。Why should you read this book？ As a retiree living in California， I understand how close real action needs to start now。 Through normal media， I’ve seen very little facts on how bad climate change is， what currently has been accomplished， and finally where this effort needs to go。 All I have seen is much wringing of hands but nothing of substance。The author is the CEO of Snam， a major energy Infrastructure company。 He is in the middle of what is happening in the hydrogen revolution。 He has a significant involvement in this field。 He explains the issues which are very involved in very cogent chapters。 He shows how the use of hydrogen not only complements other green technologies but makes them more viable。 The author uses over a hundred references to back up his facts。 He uses graphics effectively to show comparisons when the discussion has many contributing aspects。 This was a large plus for me to follow his logic。My above paragraph could be considered as the most significant negative against this book。 The author is in the industry that would have a major player in his solution。 He is not a disinterested observer。 The author is a strong advocate， but I would not dismiss this work solely based on this aspect。 Finding an alternative source of energy to met real world requirements must be urgently found。 Hydrogen technology can be a unifying key to use the best of other green technologies to make them a viable solution in the future。 As I stated above that by education， I am chemist but I never worked in the field beyond obtaining a Master’s degree。 From that education， I do not see any problems with what the author proposes。 The largest issue will be in the implementation of this technology。 That is an engineering problem in which I do not have any special expertise， but the author does have that expertise and documents many initial pilots around the world that are very promising。Overall， this book provides a persuasive look into this important issue facing all of us。 It is important that everyone understand the potential of hydrogen technology。 The author does have a slight advocacy aspect and is slightly technical， but I still believe that this book an excellent view on the potential and urgency of implementing an integrated hydrogen technology。 I rate this book with four stars。I received a free e-book version of this novel through NetGalley from Basic Books。 My review is based only by my own reading experience of this book。 I wish to thank Basic Books for the opportunity to read and review this novel early。 。。。more
Brian Clegg
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