Soal dan Pembahasan TBI (Reading Comprehension) Bagian 20

            Hydrogen, one of earth's most abundant  elements,  once was seen as green energy's  answer to the petroleum  driven,  easy to produce,  available everywhere and  nonpolluting when burned.  Hydrogen energy was defeated by a mountain of obstacles, the fear of explosion by the highly flammable gas, the difficulty  of carrying  the fuel  in  large,  heavy tanks  in  the vehicle,  and the lack  of a  refueling  network.

            Automakers turned to biofuels, electricity or the gas-electric hybrid.But  hydrogen,   it turns  out,  never was completely out  of  the  race.  Now  Israeli  scientists  and entrepreneurs claim to have brought hydrogen energy a  step closer by putting  it in much smaller, lighter containers.  Rather than using metal or composite cylinders of compressed  gas that  look  like  bulky scuba gear,  hydrogen  is  packed into glass filaments which, once out of the lab,  will  be only slightly thicker than a human  hair.  These 370 glass capillaries  are  bundled into  a glass tube called a capillary array,  about  the width of a drinking straw.  The scientists  say 11.000 such arrays will fuel  a car for 400 kilometers, take less than  half the space and weight of tanks currently installed in the few hydrogen cars now available.

            The scientists make no attempt to improve the standard fuel cell, which is not much different today from when it was invented  more than  150  years ago. A fuel  cell  makes electricity from chemical  reactions involving  hydrogen and oxygen, producing only water vapor as a byproduct. The fuel cell can be compared with a standard car's engine, while the capillary arrays would be comparable to the gasoline tank.

            While its backers call the technology a breakthrough, it is unlikely to gain traction without a large injection  of capital to scale up development.  It  also would need a dlstrlbut.on system and the support of major car  companies,  which  have  poured   billions  of dollars  into  their  own  closely  guarded  research programs.  Like electric cars, the driving force behind hydrogen  research is the need to break away  from oil and rein in emissions  of greenhouse gases blamed for climate change,  especially carbon  dioxide from industry and  transport.  Transportation  adds  about  13  percent of manmade  carbon to the atmosphere. Hydrogen  boasts zero emissions.  It can  be produced from water through electrolysis,  or harvested  as the waste product of nuclear reactors and chemical plants. Within few years,  perhaps  a decade,  hydrogen fuel will shift the world's energy balance away from oil.

    (Adapted from various sources - PTT BPPK)



  1. What is author’s main purpose in writing the passage?

    1. To explain about the industrial uses of hydrogen
    2. To describe the chemical properties of hydrogen
    3. To give examples of the combination of hydrogen and oil
    4. To discuss the breakthrough in hydrogen technology
    Jawaban : d

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  2. The word rein in paragraph 4 could be best replaced by ...

    1. Strap
    2. Secure
    3. Limit
    4. Guide
    Jawaban : c

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  3.  The following are the reasons why the hyddrogen technologi unlikely gains a development EXCEPT ...

    1. it needs a lot of money to scale up development
    2. it needs a lot of refueling network
    3. it needs a steady distribution system
    4. it needs the support of major car companies
    Jawaban : b

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  4. According to the passage, why was the hydrogen less preferable energy source to petroleum?

    1. Because it was highly flammable
    2. Because it boasted zero emissions
    3. Because it was a waste of nuclear reactors
    4. Because it was the abundant elements on earth
    Jawaban : a

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  5. It can be inferred from the passage that capillary array is  ....

    1. simpler than scuba tank
    2. more complex than scuba tank
    3. more intricate than scuba tank
    4. cheaper than scuba tank
    Jawaban : a

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  6.  The word it in paragraph 2 refers to ....

    1. gas-electric hybrid
    2. hydrogen energy
    3. electricity
    4. race
    Jawaban : b

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