Lesson 1 Reflection

1) There are three reasons why I took this course. One because it was a minor requirement
as I am pursuing the Sustainability Studies minor. Two, because I wanted to learn more
renewable energy in general, as I’ve been more engaged with climate change as a really
pressing issue. Lastly because this is an online class which worked out perfectly with my
busy schedule this semester.
2) Chemical Engineering major with a minor in Sustainability Studies.
3) I expect to be knowledgeable about the different kinds of ways people have been
successful adopting renewable energy and the different forms of renewable energy. As
in the future, I plan to help out and research for different sources of renewable energy
too!
4) “How Australia can use hydrogen to export its solar power around the world” -
https://www.theguardian.com/sustainable-business/2017/may/19/how-australia-can-
use-hydrogen-to-export-its-solar-power-around-the-world

“Recent innovations in hydrogen generation, storage, transport and use could transform
it into the ultimate source of clean energy” – as it does not emit carbon dioxide when its
burnt. Hydrogen actually isn’t a fuel itself, it’s an energy carrier. Hydrogen is produced
by electrolysis of water. It can be compressed to a liquid which can be used like
petrol/diesel or used in fuel cells to generate electricity. So the question that remains is
if this is such an amazing energy source, why isn’t it more commonly used? It’s because
of infrastructure. We have been burning natural gas for so long, that it will take some
time to start burning hydrogen instead. And because it’s not that common, even
hydrogen fueling stations in an expensive investment in Australia. Moreover, what
Australia could do is with the extensive renewable energy sources available (solar and
wind) which could be used to produce hydrogen, it can become an exporter of energy in
the form of hydrogen. However, to transport the hydrogen to suppose Japan the gas
would need to be cooled to at least -250C which ironically requires a lot of energy.
Hence, this source still needs more research and development alongside a push in the
infrastructure.