In the search for more, new and cleaner sources of energy, a largely untapped resource is emerging: natural hydrogen. Unlike hydrogen produced from industrial processes, natural hydrogen forms through geological reactions that occur normally within the Earth’s crust, meaning it costs nothing to make — though it costs some amount to extract — and does not emit any carbon dioxide or other human-caused pollutants.
Today, hydrogen is used mainly in oil refining, production of ammonia for fertilizer and to make methanol, which can be a fuel and an ingredient in plastics. Emerging technologies are making hydrogen a viable fuel for cars, planes, ships and factories. Hydrogen demand around the world is projected to grow from around 90 million metric tons in 2022 to more than 500 million metric tons by 2050. Some of that supply could come from nature itself, as well.
To describe each source of hydrogen, energy researchers like me, and the energy industry as a whole, use a
