How is Hydrogen Fuel made?

Hydrogen does not generally occur in isolation in nature, so when we talk about how hydrogen fuel is created, we are really beginning with the concept of extraction. Hydrogen molecules tend to come attached to naturally occurring structures such as water, fossil fuels, and most living creatures.
One common method of extraction involves separating hydrocarbons from water molecules, which, as you may already be aware, are comprised of two hydrogen molecules and one oxygen molecule (i.e. H2O). About 50% of the world’s hydrogen (95% of America’s) is captured via steam reforming, which involves a reaction of steam within a catalytic converter, a device we typically find in vehicle exhaust systems that converts harmful gasses into ones that are less so. Rather than converting harmful gasses, the process of steam reforming separates hydrogen atoms from the water and produces carbon dioxide (CO2) as a byproduct. Unfortunately, this byproduct CO2 is released into the atmosphere. A more expensive process of reformation can be performed on coal, but this also releases CO2; however, scientists have been making strides with keeping CO2 out of the atmosphere through a process called “carbon sequestration," which is a fancy way of saying containment. Other scientists have had success isolating hydrogen from gasoline or methanol.
A much less resource-intensive way of producing hydrogen involves harnessing photovoltaic, wind, hydro, geothermal, biomass, and even nuclear energies for the production of energy. Through these processes, the resulting electricity can be applied to the splitting of water intro hydrogen and oxygen by means of electrolysis, which is also a fancy way of saying using electricity to generate a chemical reaction.
Another method of thermal hydrogen production is partial oxidation, which involves a reaction of fuels with oxygen. Through this procedure, scientists generate a hydrogen mixture that can then be purified. Source fuels for this procedure include natural gas, oil, biomass, and coal.
A recent investigation into hydrogen production has also pointed toward a variety of species of green algae, which, through sunlight exposure, can produce hydrogen compatible with fuel production. Recently, several students have been spotlighted for their innovative work with algae-derived energy sources (e.g., Student Hits The Roof With Algae-Energy Research, Harnessing the Power of Algae for Real Green Energy, and Teens Win Big for Their Research).