The Hydrogen Economy concept is being proposed as a means of reducing and eventually decarbonising the world's energy use. It looks to hydrogen as being a replacement for methane (natural gas) and generally as a way of removing all fossil fuels from the energy supply. The concept, however, has at least four flaws, as follows: (1) hydrogen has significantly different properties to methane;; (2) hydrogen has properties that create significant hazards;; (3) hydrogen has a very small initiation (activation) energy;; and (4) liquid hydrogen cannot readily replace liquefied natural gas (LNG). Hydrogen's hazards will prevent it from being accepted in a societal sense. To the question 'Can the Hydrogen Economy concept be the solution to the future energy crisis?', the answer is 'no'. Hydrogen has and will have a role in world energy but that role will be limited to industry. For the future we need an advanced electric economy.
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