Introducing the fast, the sleek, the silent, the safe, the powerful: future transportation has great potential. All technology falls under cars, trains, airplanes, and other.
Go to energy below to briefly learn about future forms of energy.
Above credit: NASA. Used with permission.
Humans cannot live on non-renewable energy forever. "Non-renewable" means that once a source is used up, it is gone. If renewable energy is utilized instead, it can be re-used over and over. One very promising renewable energy source is called the fuel cell.
Fuel cells use hydrogen to generate their energy. On earth, hydrogen is usually found in substances such as water. A fuel cell converts hydrogen and oxygen into electricity. Although fuel cells are very powerful, there are virtually no pollutant emissions (a fuel cell releases water and heat). Pure hydrogen is used for optimal performance and less emissions.
Inside the fuel cell is an anode, cathode, and electrolyte membrane. The anode and cathode are on either side of the electrolyte. First, hydrogen enters into the anode. A catalyst, a chemical substance, separates the electrons and protons in the hydrogen. Once past the anode and in the electrolyte, only the protons are allowed on through the cathode. The electrons are forced around the electrolyte membrane. This flow of electrons is the electrical current produced by the fuel cell.
Fuel cells can harness the powerful energy of hydrogen while still keeping harmful emissions low. This form of energy, along with other renewable energy sources such as solar and geothermal power, will pave the way to a clean and efficient world.
Fuel Cells. (n.d.). Retrieved March 12, 2005, from U.S. Department of Energy Web site:
http://www.eere.energy.gov/hydrogenandfuelcells/fuelcells/basics.html
Introduction to hydrogen energy. (n.d.). Retrieved March 12, 2005, from National Renewable Energy
Labratory Web site: http://www.nrel.gov/clean_energy/hydrogen.html