[hinckley buzzard]

Not that simple. Handling of large scale quantities of hydrogen presents serious problems that are not yet fully solved even for small scale fuel cells. The issue is that the hydrogen molecule is so small it leaks through otherwise impermeable container vessels. Ordinary pipelines eg would not be usable for this reason.

otoh its worth trying to figure out.

[LesbianThespianGymnasticMidget]

So put electric power plants right by the H2 sources and use natural gas for other things. We have no problem moving either electricity and natural gas.

[IndispensableDestiny]

Ordinary pipelines eg would not be usable for this reason.

Already 1600 mile of hydrogen pipeline in use. Embrittlement is the major worry.

Hydrogen Pipelines.

[Texan Tory]

Yep, the danger of hydrogen is inherent in the physics of such a small H2 molecule, but I would think a good way to work with it would be to flow a steady low velocity air stream around any containers and tubes to dilute combustible buildup, in combination with the best seals you can manage to get.

[bigbob]

That’s pretty well figured-out, it’s just not being developed aggressively because of the cost issue that this method addresses. Chemical hydrogen storage materials, sorbents, and metal hydrides hare all been pretty well proven to be effective. Nobody’s talking about pumping hydrogen thru pipelines! The secret lies in a distributed production process like this that can be deployed near the point of use, much like the scalable automated on-site nitrogen generating plants sold by Air Products today.