around that definition. Make the rules too tough and experts told Pontecorvo the nascent hydrogen industry will be wiped out. Make them too loose and experts told her emissions will actually get worse in coming years.opinion writer Chris Tomlinson called hydrogen the “belle of the ball,” with “low turnout for the oil and gas CEO speeches and the standing-room-only crowds for clean technology entrepreneurs.
So gas companies and state regulators hope to use results from the UC Irvine study, and others in the works, to help develop those hydrogen injection standards. They argue that any amount of natural gas displaced by hydrogen will lead to lower carbon emissions.UC Irvine is home to the National Fuel Cell Research Center, which has been testing hydrogen for years. The center is led by Jack Brouwer, an engineering professor at UCI who’s studied hydrogen for 25 years.
If hydrogen does leak, emerging research suggests it’s a so-called secondary greenhouse gas that still contributes to global warming. It’s also roughly five times more likely than natural gas to ignite, raising the risk of catastrophic events.