Who Discovered Hydrogen?

Our sun is fueled by hydrogen and some research automobiles are based on it as fuel. An atom of hydrogen is the smallest of all elements that exist. Hydrogen is the most plentiful element in the universe. An atom of hydrogen is made up of two subatomic particles, one electron and one proton.

The sun is fueled by hydrogen fusion reactions where two hydrogen atoms combine and liberate huge amounts of energy. The hydrogen bomb, which was used to help bring a rapid end to WWII with the Japanese, also depended on hydrogen.

Hydrogen exists in three forms, hydrogen, deuterium, and tritium. The only different between the three forms of hydrogen is the addition of one or two neutrons to the nucleus of the atom. Tritium is radioactive and is used in the construction and operation of nuclear weapons.

Hydrogen gas was first generated by the reaction of acid and metal created by T. von Hohenheim. He produced hydrogen in the fifteenth century. Robert Boyle later repeated the process with acid and iron in 1671 and recorded his observations.

It wasn’t until 1766 that Henry Cavendish discovered that the gas produced from the reaction of acid and metal produced a new element: hydrogen. It is debatable whether von Hohenheim discovered hydrogen because he was the first to make it or whether Cavendish discovered it because he took the time to document and investigate the gas. Most credit Cavendish with the discovery of hydrogen.

Little did the man who discovered hydrogen know, however, that the sun burns hydrogen as its source of fuel and that there is only enough hydrogen and hydrogen byproducts to last another five billion years; some believe that when this happens, our sun will explode and take all the planets in the solar system with it.

Uses for Hydrogen

Cavendish, who discovered hydrogen, would have never dreamed of all the things hydrogen is used for today. The combustion of hydrogen is very clean and has little impact on the environment. The byproduct of the combustion of hydrogen and oxygen is water vapor. This, along with its other properties, explains why hydrogen is so useful.

Hydrogen gas was the first fuel used in inflatable aircrafts and Zeppelins. Unfortunately, hydrogen is extremely flammable and one of the most famous air disasters of all time was the explosion and burning of the Hindenburg Zeppelin in 1937.  The accident occurred while landing at Lakehurst, New Jersey. Following this disaster, helium replaced the gas used to fill the gas chambers on the airships. 

Because of its low temperature, hydrogen is also ideal for studying superconductor magnets and it is also a perfect liquid for cryogenic freezing.  Due to the fact that hydrogen is the simplest of all elements, it has a temperature of 14 degrees Kelvin in the liquid state. That is minus 259 degrees Celsius.

Ammonia

Hydrogen gas is used in a variety of other applications that range from food products to the production of industrial chemicals. One of the most important chemical processes in the world is the Haber process used to produce ammonia. The Haber process uses large amounts of gaseous hydrogen to produce ammonia.

The ammonia is then used in the production of other chemicals, but most importantly, it is used in the production of agricultural fertilizer for farming. The production of oils for the food industry uses hydrogen to treat increase the degree of saturation of cooking oils and fats.

Other Uses

Modern power technology uses hydrogen in metal hydride batteries that power cell phones and laptop computers. They provide a higher power density and are a longer life battery than conventional alkaline or rechargeable batteries that have been used in the past.

The space program utilizes hydrogen as a fuel source that, when burned with oxygen, creates enough power to launch our spacecraft into orbit and even out into space.

Many other products use hydrogen in the manufacturing process; sugar, water, methane, hydrochloric acid and hydrogen peroxide are just a few of these products.

Finally, some of the hottest topics of research today involve efforts to solve the greenhouse effects that result from burning fossil fuels. Hydrogen plays a key role in a number of those projects.