Canada

With the increasing demand for clean energy and the global push toward carbon neutrality hydrogen has emerged as a promising alternative fuel. Ports are critical nodes in the hydrogen supply chain that are increasingly being utilized as long-term hydrogen storage hubs. However integrating hydrogen storage systems into port infrastructure presents unique technical environmental and safety challenges. This review systematically examines current technologies used for hydrogen storage in port environments—including compressed gas cryogenic liquid cryocompressed gas ammonia liquid organic hydrogen carriers solid-state hydrides and underground storage. Each technology is evaluated based on performance infrastructure requirements accident risks environmental impact and cost. The study also assesses port-specific infrastructure vulnerabilities under operational stress and climate change conditions and explores strategies for accident prevention emergency response and postincident recovery. A comprehensive framework is proposed to enhance the resilience and safety of hydrogen storage systems at ports. This study offers valuable insights for stakeholders and researchers by addressing technical gaps regulatory challenges and future directions for sustainable and safe hydrogen storage in port facilities

Blue hydrogen is a key pathway for reducing greenhouse gas emissions while utilizing natural gas with carbon capture and storage (CCS). This study conducts a techno-economic and environmental analysis of a greenfield blue hydrogen plant in Saskatchewan Canada integrating both SMR and ATR technologies. Unlike previous studies that focus mainly on production units this research includes all process and utility systems such as H2 and CO2 compression air separation refrigeration co-generation and gas dehydration. Aspen HYSYS simulations revealed ATR’s energy demand is 10% lower than that of SMR. The hydrogen production cost was USD 3.28/kg for ATR and USD 3.33/kg for SMR while a separate study estimated a USD 2.2/kg cost for design without utilities highlighting the impact of indirect costs. Environmental analysis showed ATR’s lower Global Warming Potential (GWP) compared to SMR reducing its carbon footprint. The results signified the role of utility integration site conditions and process selection in optimizing energy efficiency costs and sustainability.

Electrolytic hydrogen can support the decarbonization of the power sector. Achieving cost-effective power-to-gas-to-power (PGP) integration through targeted emissions pricing can accelerate the adoption of electrolytic hydrogen in greenhouse gas-intensive power sectors. This study develops a framework for assessing the economic viability of electrolytic hydrogen-based PGP systems in fossil fuel-dependent grids while considering the competing objectives of the electricity system operator a risk-averse investor and the government. Here we show that given the risk-averse investor’s inherent pursuit of profit maximization a break-even carbon abatement cost of at least 57 Canadian Dollars per tonne of CO₂ by 2030 from the government with a shift in electricity market dispatch rules from sole system marginal pricereduction to system-wide emissions reduction is essential to stimulate price discovery for low-cost hydrogen production and contingency reserve provision by the PGP system. This work can help policymakers capture and incentivize the role of electrolytic hydrogen in low-carbon power sector planning.

The conventional electrolysis is recognized as a mature and promising hydrogen (H2) production technology but there is still a strong need for further performance improvement. In this regard achieving an effective H2 evolution reaction at the cathode requires costly catalysts such as platinum and various catalyst-modified electrode materials. Nevertheless these materials are expensive and involve complex production procedures. Due to an increasing interest in deploying biomaterial-based cathodes as potential alternatives to conventional cathode materials we make the focus of this study on such materials and a graphite-loaded bioelectrode is in this regard synthesized for electrolysis application for effective H2 production. The surface morphology and electrochemical activity of the produced biocathode are characterized. Our results show that the H2 production performance of the system improves with the increasing graphite dosage on the biocathode and with the applied voltage ranging from 2 to 6 V. At improved operating conditions the highest H2 production rate of 1000 ppm (8.18 mg/m3 min) is obtained using a 1.5 g graphite-loaded biocathode at an applied voltage of 6 V. Consequently the produced graphite-loaded biocathode can be a promising option for sustainable and effective H2 production with waste minimization owing to its high conductivity low-cost and good stability.

This study presents a comparative life cycle and economic assessment of using clean hydrogen as a sustainable alternative to natural gas and propane for corn grain drying. The study compares the environmental performance limited to GWP100 and cost-effectiveness of hydrogen from various renewable sources (hydro wind solar) and plasma pyrolysis of natural gas against conventional fossil fuels under two delivery scenarios: pipeline and trucking. A life cycle assessment is conducted using Open LCA to quantify the carbon intensity of each fuel from cradle to combustion at multiple energy requirements based on four burner efficiencies across each scenario. In parallel economic analysis is conducted by calculating the fuel cost required per ton of dried corn grains at each efficiency across both scenarios. The results indicate that green hydrogen consistently outperforms current fuels in terms of emissions but it is generally more expensive at lower burner efficiencies and in trucking scenarios. However the cost competitiveness of green hydrogen improves significantly at higher efficiency and with pipeline infrastructure development it can become more economical when compared to propane. Hydrogen produced via plasma pyrolysis offers high environmental and economic costs due to its electricity and natural gas requirements. Sensitivity analysis further explores the impact of a 50% reduction in hydrogen production and transportation costs revealing that hydrogen could become a viable option for grain drying in both pipeline and trucking scenarios. This study highlights the long-term potential of hydrogen in reducing carbon emissions and offers insights into the economic feasibility of hydrogen adoption in agricultural drying processes. The findings suggest that strategic investments in hydrogen infrastructure could significantly enhance the sustainability of agricultural practices paving the way for a greener future in food production.

Clean energy technologies offer promising pathways for low-carbon transitions yet their feasibility remains uncertain particularly in rapidly developing regions. This study develops a Factorial Multi-Stochastic Optimization-driven Equilibrium (FMOE) model to assess the economic and environmental impacts of clean power deployment. Using Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) in Guangdong China as a case study the model reveals that SMRs can reduce system costs and alleviate GDP losses supporting provincial-level Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs). If offshore wind capital costs fall to 40 % of SMRs’ SMR deployment may no longer be necessary after 2030. Otherwise SMRs could supply 22 % of capacity by 2040. The FMOE model provides a robust adaptable framework for evaluating emerging technologies under uncertainty and supports sustainable power planning across diverse regional contexts. This study offers valuable insights into the resource and economic implications of clean energy strategies contributing to global carbon neutrality and efficient energy system design.

A hybrid energy system (HES) integrates various energy resources to attain synchronized energy output. However HES faces significant challenges due to rising energy consumption the expenses of using multiple sources increased emissions due to non-renewable energy resources etc. This study aims to develop an energy management strategy for distribution grids (DGs) by incorporating a hydrogen storage system (HSS) and demand-side management strategy (DSM) through the design of a multi-objective optimization technique. The primary focus is on optimizing operational costs and reducing pollution. These are approached as minimization problems while also addressing the challenge of achieving a high penetration of renewable energy resources framed as a maximization problem. The third objective function is introduced through the implementation of the demand-side management strategy aiming to minimize the energy gap between initial demand and consumption. This DSM strategy is designed around consumers with three types of loads: sheddable loads non-sheddable loads and shiftable loads. To establish a bidirectional communication link between the grid and consumers by utilizing a distribution grid operator (DGO). Additionally the uncertain behavior of wind solar and demand is modeled using probability distribution functions: Weibull for wind PDF beta for solar and Gaussian PDF for demand. To tackle this tri-objective optimization problem this work proposes a hybrid approach that combines well-known techniques namely the non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm II and multi-objective particle swarm optimization (Hybrid-NSGA-II-MOPSO). Simulation results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed model in optimizing the tri-objective problem while considering various constraints.