________________________________________ * Author for correspondence; E-mail: anand.g@vit.ac.in; Ph.: +91-416-2202536; Fax: +91-416-2243092 Int. J. Chem. Sci.: 12(4), 2014, 1478-1486 ISSN 0972-768X www.sadgurupublications.com HYDROGEN ECONOMY VS. METHANOL ECONOMY SARTHAK TIBDEWAL, UTSAV SAXENA and ANAND V. P. GURUMOORTHY * Chemical Engineering Division, School of Mechanical and Building Sciences, VIT University, VELLORE – 632014 (T.N.) INDIA ABSTRACT Today, the human civilization is very much dependent on fossil fuels, which make the blood and bone of this modern world. These precious natural resources, which form over the course of hundreds of years, are being consumed swiftly. In this alarming situation, it is very much necessary to think for a replacement, which fulfils the social needs without disturbing the environmental stability. One such approach discussed most over the years is ‘Hydrogen economy-Producing and using hydrogen as a clean fuel’, but there is no infrastructure for it. As it is a volatile gas, so it needs to be handled and stored at high a pressure. Moreover, it is an inflammable gas, which makes its usage as a transportation fuel difficult. A more potential and reasonable alternative, which is gaining importance is ‘Methanol Economy’ where methanol can be used as a source for transportation, energy storage and raw material for artificial hydrocarbons and their commodities. It is an excellent fuel. Methanol prices today are competitive with hydrocarbon fuels (on energy basis). Development is noted on the commercial conversion of biomass to methanol by means of thermochemical mechanism. Adequate feedstock of natural gas and coal lies to empower the handling of exhaustible methanol as transition fuel to renewable methanol from biomass. This paper discusses methanol’s potential as an alternate of the hydrogen economy. Key words: DMFC, Methanol economy, Hydrogen economy, Energy security, Transportation. INTRODUCTION In present day scenario, there is a heavy dependency on fossil fuels. Almost all the energy that we use comes from fossil fuels; for instance natural gas and oil. The rate at which the fossil fuels are being used today is significant and will become expensive in near future. Therefore, there is a strong need to find and develop new sources and options for overcoming this issue. Most of the fossil fuels that we see today contain hydrocarbons having variation in the ratios of carbon and oxygen. Upon combustion, carbon is oxidized to CO 2 while hydrogen to H 2 O. Production of hydrogen and using it as a clean fuel is termed as hydrogen economy.