Hydrogen - Fuel of the Future

Do you like paying $3.78 for a gallon of gasoline? Well, as of May 16, 2008 that is the national average. You wake up knowing you need to fill the tank and the hair stands up on the back of your neck as you think of how much more the price has increased over night. It doesn’t have to be that way if you believe in the power of change. Hydrogen fuel is that change for the automobiles of the future. Hydrogen has been used for decades, but mostly for commercial use. Each year, we get closer to removing the oil company’s choke hold on our wallets. It’s time to drive with a lighter purse and a cleaner environment and it’s time for hydrogen fuel. The two largest points of debate with hydrogen fuel are cost and production
Hydrogen fuel is a cheaper alternative to our current source of automobile fuel used today. To make hydrogen fuel worth the time and energy put forth by researches and neighboring companies the cost must be equivalent or better. According to the US Department of Energy (2005), the cost goal of hydrogen when benchmarked against current oil prices and future trends will be 27% - 52% cheaper than the per gallon gas cost today. The technology goal is set for the year 2015 for having a full initiative underway for commercial use. Keep in mind that the average per gallon cost will be $1.80 for consumers with hydrogen fuel. This takes into account a 43 cent tax. According to Rose (2005), hydrogen fuel will not be taxed initially due in part to the fuel cell technology making hydrogen a super clean fuel source. That will lower the per gallon cost to $1.10 for consumers. The numbers compiled and estimated costs do not account for road taxes or any other unforeseen taxes. The final and most important piece to hydrogen cost is the expense needed to build an infrastructure. Many estimates range from 10 billion to 15 billion dollars (Rose, 2005). The oil industry spends 11 billion dollars per year just to maintain its service station fleet (Rose,