Hydrogen- the simplest and most abundant of the elements, can also be a powerful clean energy solution. Hydrogen can be burned as a fuel or utilized in electrochemical fuel cells to produce energy with only water as an output. Low Carbon, or Clean Hydrogen, can also be used as a storage medium, which is important for balancing energy demand with intermittent sources such as renewables.
Clean hydrogen is advancing globally. Many of us have seen hydrogen in the form of clean hydrogen vehicles, and you may even have a hydrogen fuel station in your area. For transport, hydrogen has some advantages in that it is zero emissions but can provide longer range and quicker refueling as compared to electric vehicles. Clean hydrogen transport is of interest, for example, to the long-haul trucking industry and others that require heavy duty transport options. Industry consortiums, such as the Global Hydrogen Mobility Alliance in the EU, are promoting policies to accelerate the implementation of the hydrogen production and fueling station infrastructure needed for reliable hydrogen truck transport in the region.
Fueling much more than transport
Clean hydrogen can be used as a fuel source for heavy industries, such as chemicals, steel and cement that require high density fuels for production. It also can be used for electricity generation. Significant efforts are underway to determine how hydrogen can be safely blended with fuels such as natural gas to burn in traditional power plants.
Earlier this year, Georgia Power and Mitsubishi Power successfully tested the blending of 50% Hydrogen with natural gas at one of Georgia Power’s natural gas plants near Atlanta. While this resulted in an estimated 22% reduction in CO2 emissions as compared to 100% natural gas, it is an important interim step towards lower carbon, as blending can be applied at scale using existing advanced gas plant technologies. Around the world, manufacturers are competing to produce commercially available technologies that can effectively utilize 100% clean hydrogen for electricity production.
How do we get low carbon hydrogen?
For clean hydrogen- it’s important to understand that the production process matters. Clean hydrogen can be produced from electrolysis using clean energy sources, or chemically from natural gas (methane) combined with Carbon Capture and Sequestration (CCS). Significant geological deposits of hydrogen are also being found, which have the potential to be cost effectively utilized in the future.
The key two low carbon hydrogen production processes utilized today are steam methane reformation (SMR) and electrolysis. SMR production combines methane with water to produce hydrogen and CO2. To become low carbon, the CO2 generated must be captured and permanently sequestered, typically in the subsurface. Electrolysis uses electricity and water to produce Hydrogen and Oxygen. Clean electricity sources such as renewable energy or nuclear are needed to achieve low carbon hydrogen production using electrolysis.
The methane reformation process is gaining significant traction in the Gulf Coast of the US, where natural gas and carbon capture resources and expertise are abundant. Electrolytic hydrogen production is growing in the EU, where policy and incentives are encouraging “Green Hydrogen Valleys” or regions where ecosystems of electrolytic hydrogen production, storage and end use infrastructure are creating local economies for renewable energy produced hydrogen.
Clean hydrogen projects wanted
Since both these methods produce low carbon hydrogen, it is important to see both pathways develop and flourish as part of our transition to a low carbon future. Both are critical players in building the hydrogen economy needed to scale clean hydrogen to the point that it becomes more competitive with traditional fuels.
While there was an abundance of enthusiasm for Clean Hydrogen solutions in the past few years, economic realities have begun to sink in, and we have seen several developers retreat in this space. However, the general lack of hype has fortunately left us with more solid projects that are moving forward, which we will highlight in future blogs.