The Concept of Hydrogen Fuel One Day Replacing Crude Oil as the Worlds Primary Energy Source - Essay Example

Peak oil and the reliance of Western economies on crude oil imports for the operation of the economy points to the world reaching a critical point where demand for petroleum products outstrip supply and prices surge, raising the costs of transportation and delivery in society. Because of this economic threat caused by the nature of global petroleum reserves, society needs to plan ahead and develop new energy sources that are “Green” and sustainable. In reviewing options such as solar power, geothermal energy, and wind-generated electricity, the best option for the future may be Hydrogen power, as Hydrogen is a clean-burning, widely available fuel that can be used to fuel the automobile culture and other energy needs of society as civilization enters a new era in the future.

There are many reasons why Hydrogen can be considered an ideal replacement fuel for petroleum in the future. First, the automobile pollution created by millions of cars around the world is one of the largest contributors to global warming through carbon emissions, as well as introducing other harmful pollutants into the atmosphere. Secondly, the automobile-based economy uses petroleum products as fuel, even though these resources are unequally distributed geographically around the globe and not every nation produces enough oil from nature reserves to meet supply.

Third, there is a “Peak Oil” theory that suggests the total quantity of oil reserves internationally is finite and limited, and that production at current oil fields is declining. (Bardi, 2009) These factors predict higher gas and oil prices with subsequent effects on the global economy, as well as environmental destruction.