3 ms·

Not sure about cars, but I find the idea of hydrogen as a replacement for natural gas in home heating to be more plausible than heat pumps. The efficiency of h

by jl6 5y ago

Not sure about cars, but I find the idea of hydrogen as a replacement for natural gas in home heating to be more plausible than heat pumps. The efficiency of hydrogen electrolysis seems low, but potentially not an issue if the absolute cost of wind/solar continues to drop - and it's a storage solution for smoothing renewable production too.

m1sta_ 5y ago
"storage solution for smoothing renewable production too" This is underappreciated.
nradov 5y ago
How would you propose to solve the leakage and embrittlement problems that make hydrogen unsuitable for home heating today?
- jl6 5y ago
  Replace the metal pipes with plastic pipes, which is already underway in the UK: https://piperepair.co.uk/2020/08/04/pipe-replacements-to-cut-britains-gas-networks-carbon-footprint-by-two-thirds/ https://piperepair.co.uk/2020/08/04/pipe-replacements-to-cut...
outworlder 5y ago
Why is it more plausible than heat pumps? We don't have infrastructure to ship hydrogen the way we do natural gas. It's not like one can use the same pipes. Why are heat pumps not plausible? You can get them today.
- jl6 5y ago
  The UK is replacing its metal pipes with plastic pipes: https://piperepair.co.uk/2020/08/04/pipe-replacements-to-cut-britains-gas-networks-carbon-footprint-by-two-thirds/ https://piperepair.co.uk/2020/08/04/pipe-replacements-to-cut... Aside from the cost (which might come down), heat pumps have some inherent disadvantages - reliance on insulation, and slow ramp up time. So no more opening the windows at night for fresh air, then getting the house back up to temperature in the morning.
  - 0ldskool 5y ago
    Everything you described would be a problem with hydrogen as well if not more so. You would need much much more insulation + special pipes for hydrogen usage. I don't know about slow ramp up times, I've never heard this. It takes mine about 10-30seconds for a 3 story house to start up. "So no more opening the windows at night for fresh air, then getting the house back up to temperature in the morning." I don't understand, how does hydrogen solve this problem? How is this not a problem for other sources? Random note: I'm all for heat pumps & all for hydrogen. They just aren't for the same use cases. Heat pumps are good for heating+cooling of spaces. Hydrogen is good way to store electricity when care about energy-to-weight and/or need quick fuelling.
    - jl6 5y ago
      How long does it take your house to get from cold to hot? Surely 10-30 seconds is the system startup time, not the time taken to heat up the house?

by jl6 5y ago

m1sta_ 5y ago

"storage solution for smoothing renewable production too" This is underappreciated.

nradov 5y ago

How would you propose to solve the leakage and embrittlement problems that make hydrogen unsuitable for home heating today?

jl6 5y ago
Replace the metal pipes with plastic pipes, which is already underway in the UK: https://piperepair.co.uk/2020/08/04/pipe-replacements-to-cut-britains-gas-networks-carbon-footprint-by-two-thirds/ https://piperepair.co.uk/2020/08/04/pipe-replacements-to-cut...

outworlder 5y ago

Why is it more plausible than heat pumps? We don't have infrastructure to ship hydrogen the way we do natural gas. It's not like one can use the same pipes. Why are heat pumps not plausible? You can get them today.

jl6 5y ago
The UK is replacing its metal pipes with plastic pipes: https://piperepair.co.uk/2020/08/04/pipe-replacements-to-cut-britains-gas-networks-carbon-footprint-by-two-thirds/ https://piperepair.co.uk/2020/08/04/pipe-replacements-to-cut... Aside from the cost (which might come down), heat pumps have some inherent disadvantages - reliance on insulation, and slow ramp up time. So no more opening the windows at night for fresh air, then getting the house back up to temperature in the morning.
- 0ldskool 5y ago
  Everything you described would be a problem with hydrogen as well if not more so. You would need much much more insulation + special pipes for hydrogen usage. I don't know about slow ramp up times, I've never heard this. It takes mine about 10-30seconds for a 3 story house to start up. "So no more opening the windows at night for fresh air, then getting the house back up to temperature in the morning." I don't understand, how does hydrogen solve this problem? How is this not a problem for other sources? Random note: I'm all for heat pumps & all for hydrogen. They just aren't for the same use cases. Heat pumps are good for heating+cooling of spaces. Hydrogen is good way to store electricity when care about energy-to-weight and/or need quick fuelling.
  - jl6 5y ago
    How long does it take your house to get from cold to hot? Surely 10-30 seconds is the system startup time, not the time taken to heat up the house?