SPREAD TOO THINA major drawback for potential green hydrogen users is that there has been too little of the stuff available to allow for much real world testing.
Yet these train systems have occupied the time and attention of hydrogen system developers that may have been better spent elsewhere.
And as heat pumps have been making rapid inroads into home heating markets across Europe and elsewhere in recent years - at a fraction of the cost of a potential hydrogen set up - it is clear that household hydrogen applications will remain scarce.
LADDERING UPThe most promising areas for potential hydrogen use have been highlighted by industry analyst Michael Liebreich in his so-called Hydrogen Ladder.
Rather than attempt to deploy hydrogen against lower-cost options in homes and transport systems, Liebreich suggests that the hydrogen industry pursue demand opportunities in helping heavy industry to decarbonise.
Persons:
Michael Liebreich, Gavin Maguire, Stephen Coates
Organizations:
International Energy Agency, Reuters, Thomson
Locations:
LITTLETON , Colorado, Germany, Europe