Truth be told, the Hindenburg airship blew up because the Germans used hydrogen instead of helium, but the petrol and diesel we have in our vehicles are just as dangerous, if not more. But we think nothing of it most of the time.
And as for the H-bomb, well, it is a weapon of mass destruction, which is not the best use for hydrogen really.
What hydrogen is good for is as a renewable, non-polluting fuel. That is to say, hydrogen can be obtained easily by breaking down water molecules into two parts hydrogen and one part oxygen, and when hydrogen is burned with oxygen, you get water.
Yet, why is the world slow to adopt hydrogen as a mainstream fuel source? Politics and ignorance.
It is simply not in the interest of powerful lobbyist groups to wean Western industries off oil, particularly Middle East oil.
And so turning to hydrogen as a source of fuel is made to look impractical or uneconomical.
Just look at how expensive hybrid cars are generally. Are they really so limited by today's understanding of fuel-cell technology that they become impractical for the common person? The answer to that is, no.
And thanks to the Internet, such a veil of ignorance is being lifted, albeit slowly.
The truth is, any old car, bus, truck or motorcycle can be turned into a hybrid vehicle with cheap hydrogen fuel cells produced from materials available at the common hardware store.
And you do not need an automotive engineering degree or a doctorate in nuclear physics to produce a working hydrogen fuel cell. Simple Form Four level of understanding in electrolysis and some experience in machine tooling will do.
Of course, one is not suggesting that Malaysians build their own hydrogen fuel cells in their backyards. Just as it is unwise to fool around with gasoline, it is unwise to fool around with hydrogen.
Nonetheless, the fact remains that it can be done without advanced technology and without costing anyone an arm and a leg.
A particularly interesting Internet site is http://www.waterpowered car.com. It explains how simple it is to produce a "hydrogen booster" fuel cell, replete with diagrams and tips on how to produce the most efficient gasoline-hydrogen hybrid vehicle for as little as US$100 (RM370).
More importantly, the Webmaster for the site is no engineering expert. And this begs the question, "With all the great minds of the West cracking their heads to find a viable renewable source of alternative fuel, why couldn't they come up with something as simple as the hydrogen booster?" Conspiracy theorists would suggest that they have been paid off to shut up. The alternative is, they may not be as smart as they would like us all to think, which is unlikely.
Whatever the reason, Malaysians are now fortunate to have commercial- grade hydrogen boosters that produce hydrogen on demand, thanks to the efforts of HFT Sdn Bhd in bringing the technology to the fore. Working hand-in-hand with LM Star Autoworld Sdn Bhd, HFT Sdn Bhd has made available the hybrid SUV LMG Tourer and hybrid 4X4 LMG Trekker.
Aptly, "Just add water" became the motto at the launch of two hydrogen hybrid vehicles by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi. "Now that the Prime Minister has launched the `cracker plant' (hydrogen booster) via LMG cars, we can breathe a sigh of relief," says HFT's chief executive officer Mohammad Isa Abdullah. "Before this, it was perceived as a hoax." And just how much are the savings for investing in a cracker plant? "You can cut fuel cost, not consumption, by half," answers Mohammad Isa. "So, if your normal consumption is about RM500 a month, you get back your investment cost within a year by saving RM250 a month." And that is just the beginning. According to Mohammad Isa, plans are in the works to produce a smaller version of the cracker plant meant for use with motorcycles.
"If the common people can all cut back on the use of petrol, do you think the Government would continue to be burdened by oil subsidies?" asks Mohammad Isa rhetorically. "And if the whole world can benefit from this cracker plant technology, do you think that oil prices would continue to rise?" Mohammad Isa says he is not worried about copycat competition. "Others may try to produce something similar to the cracker plant, but without a secret ingredient in the form of the alloy used in the plant, theirs won't be as efficient. The key to the success of this technology lies in application. And the possibilities are nearly endless. It has found its way into automobiles. Next, it would be airplanes, manufacturing industry, etc." And perhaps, there could be more peace in the world as well. "They wouldn't be fighting for oil in the Middle East as much," he adds.