The Hype About Hydrogen.

In the early 1900s, Romm worked for SurePower, a company that offered businesses uninterrupted power supplies from a fuel cell system. The technology worked, out the company secured only one major client in 4 years. Romm offers this example and other similar scenarios to illustrate general corporate resistance to new technology. This is but one of several hurdles that will inhibit implementation of a hydrogen economy in the near future, he says, though some lawmakers and a few corporations, such as General Motors, are overly optimistic about fuel cell technology. While fuel cells lag, our environment worsens because of the burning of fossil fuels, especially for transportation, Romm also points out the economic, environmental, and safety shortcomings of the fossil fuel-derived hydrogen that is the core of fuel cell systems being developed today. Alternatively, he argues on behalf of the hybrid gasoline-electric vehicles that we already have. A diesel-electric hybrid could be as efficient as a fuel cell vehicle of the future, he declares. Island Pr, 2004, 238 p., hardcover, $25.00.