Hydrogen and methanol: a comparison of safety, economics, efficiencies and emissions

Fuel cell cars will appear on the market early in the next century. A question still remains — whether these vehicles will store onboard, hydrogen or, the hydrogen-rich carrier, methanol. There are a number of key areas surrounding this question, three of which are safety, economics and efficiency and emissions. Each of these issues was examined using the available literature. It can be seen that it is only with emissions that a clear difference appears and then hydrogen shows an advantage over methanol.