Report Covers Status of Hydrogen Industry

Report Covers Status of Hydrogen Industry

Research and Markets has announced the release of "World Hydrogen Generation 2006: Established and Emerging Markets.”

The 300-page study covers the current status of the hydrogen and hydrogen generation industries and includes a detailed review of whether or not there is to be success found from expansion into energy storage and transportation. The traditional hydrogen markets of petroleum refining, unconventional oil refining, semiconductor fabrication, annealing stainless steel and annealing ferrous metals are looked at in detail, are as the use of hydrogen through the decade for galvanizing and brazing operations, for sintering, within the float glass industry and for hydrogenation.

The study lists the reasons why the hydrogen industry may not be able to create the lower hydrogen prices needed to become predominant in the emerging energy storage and transportation markets and also discusses in detail how these chasms may be crossed successfully. Today hydrogen prices, determined by both the method of generation and the feedstock, are acceptable for industrial uses but unacceptable for energy applications and are currently rising rather than falling. Producing hydrogen at a reduced cost is the greatest challenge facing the industry today.

The report also details the move to fuel cells for transportation and the intricacies of building a hydrogen world, including the need for a new and more reliable storage and distribution system and also details what would be needed to move to a hydrogen internal combustion engine. Projections of stationary fuel cell use for energy applications and the growth in that sector in the coming years is detailed, as is the amount of hydrogen to be used for automotive applications through 2010.

Also examined are the annual unit sales and the corresponding yearly sales revenues of electrolysers, large stream reformers and small reformer sales through 2010. Annual production through 2010 for methanol, ammonia and hydrogen are also given and discussed extensively.

Published 05/25/2006