Do you know how hydrogen, the most abundant element in the universe, is used in everyday life?
In this article, we will explain how hydrogen is used in our daily life as a basic knowledge of chemistry that is useful in society.
The technical knowledge is also explained in a simple, easy to understand, bite-sized format.
Contents
Properties and characteristics of hydrogen
Hydrogen is the most abundant element in the universe and also the lightest of all elements.
Characteristically, it is known to react violently with oxygen when lit and burns explosively.
Being the most abundant element in the universe, burning explosively and reacting with oxygen, hydrogen is useful in society in many ways.
Specifically, let’s look at the areas in which they are used.
How hydrogen is used in society
In modern society, hydrogen is used in numerous areas, including ‘fuel cells’, ‘FCVs (fuel cell vehicles)’ and ‘rocket engines’.
Hydrogen is useful for ‘fuel cells’.
Fuel cells use hydrogen (H2) and oxygen (O2) to generate electricity and then discharge water (H2O) in a very eco-friendly way.
In recent years, when global warming has become an issue, this method, which does not emit CO2, has attracted attention.
Among these, FCVs (fuel cell vehicles) powered by these fuel cells are probably the most commonly heard of these days.
Hydrogen is useful for ‘FCVs (fuel cell vehicles)
Fuel cell powered fuel cell vehicles as introduced earlier.
FCVs, an acronym for ‘Fuel Cell Vehicle’, are already on sale to the public as the ultimate eco-car.
However, unlike electric vehicles, there are problems such as the lack of charging points, making it difficult in practice to use these vehicles in ordinary passenger cars.
Therefore, attempts are now being made to tackle environmental problems by converting large vehicles such as buses and trucks into FCVs. They are truly the vehicles of the future.
Hydrogen is useful for ‘rocket engines’.
Hydrogen is also used in the engines of rockets that are launched into space.
Hydrogen is used as fuel for the rocket engine, but it is loaded with liquid oxygen as well as liquid hydrogen.
So why is oxygen also loaded?
The rocket’s destination is space. And in space there is no oxygen.
The fuel itself is hydrogen, but the fire needs oxygen to burn, so both need to be pinched together.
History of hydrogen
Symbol for chemical elements: H
The name is a combination of the Greek words hydro (water) and gennao (resulting), meaning that it is the source from which water is composed.
Water is “H2O,” which can be broken down into “H2” and “O2,” which explains the name of origin.
Summary
In this article, we discussed the following points
- Hydrogen is the most abundant and lightest element in the universe
- Hydrogen is used in ‘fuel cells’, ‘FCVs’ and ‘rocket engines’.
- The name Hydrogen comes from what constitutes water.
References site
Fuel cells
水素や燃料電池に関する基礎知識
Rocket engines
ロケットの燃料が宇宙で燃えるわけ | NHK for School
History
水素の性質と活用 | 水素とは | 水素エネルギーナビ
