United States
Everything About Hydrogen Podcast: Global Energy Majors in the Hydrogen Space
Jul 2022
Publication
On today’s episode of Everything About Hydrogen we are speaking with Paul Bogers Vice President for Hydrogen at Shell. As a company Shell needs no introduction but the company’s work and investments in the hydrogen space make it a global leader in the energy transition especially when it comes to the hydrogen component. Paul is amongst the executives at Shell that are working to bring their hydrogen vision to fruition and it is great to have him with us on the show today.
The podcast can be found on their website
The podcast can be found on their website
A Study into Proton Exchange Membrane Fuel Cell Power and Voltage Prediction using Artificial Neural Network
Sep 2022
Publication
Polymer Electrolyte Membrane fuel cell (PEMFC) uses hydrogen as fuel to generate electricity and by-product water at relatively low operating temperatures which is environmentally friendly. Since PEMFC performance characteristics are inherently nonlinear and related predicting the best performance for the different operating conditions is essential to improve the system’s efficiency. Thus modeling using artificial neural networks (ANN) to predict its performance can significantly improve the capabilities of handling multi-variable nonlinear performance of the PEMFC. This paper predicts the electrical performance of a PEMFC stack under various operating conditions. The four input terms for the 5 W PEMFC include anode and cathode pressures and flow rates. The model performances are based on ANN using two different learning algorithms to estimate the stack voltage and power. The models have shown consistently to be comparable to the experimental data. All models with at least five hidden neurons have coefficients of determination of 0.95 or higher. Meanwhile the PEMFC voltage and power models have mean squared errors of less than 1 × 10−3 V and 1 × 10−3 W respectively. Therefore the model results demonstrate the potential use of ANN into the implementation of such models to predict the steady state behavior of the PEMFC system (not limited to polarization curves) for different operating conditions and help in the optimization process for achieving the best performance of the system.
Evaluation of Selectivity and Resistance to Poisons of Commercial Hydrogen Sensors
Sep 2013
Publication
The development of reliable hydrogen sensors is crucial for the safe use of hydrogen. One of the main concerns of end-users is sensor reliability in the presence of species other than the target gas which can lead to false alarms or undetected harmful situations. In order to assess the selectivity of commercial of the shelf (COTS) hydrogen sensors a number of sensors of different technology types were exposed to various interferent gas species. Cross-sensitivity tests were performed in accordance to the recommendations of ISO 26142:2010 using the hydrogen sensor testing facilities of NREL and JRC-IET. The results and conclusions arising from this study are presented.
Transition to a Hydrogen-Based Economy: Possibilities and Challenges
Nov 2022
Publication
Across the globe energy production and usage cause the greatest greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions which are the key driver of climate change. Therefore countries around the world are aggressively striving to convert to a clean energy regime by altering the ways and means of energy production. Hydrogen is a frontrunner in the race to net-zero carbon because it can be produced using a diversity of feedstocks has versatile use cases and can help ensure energy security. While most current hydrogen production is highly carbon-intensive advances in carbon capture renewable energy generation and electrolysis technologies could help drive the production of low-carbon hydrogen. However significant challenges such as the high cost of production a relatively small market size and inadequate infrastructure need to be addressed before the transition to a hydrogen-based economy can be made. This review presents the state of hydrogen demand challenges in scaling up low-carbon hydrogen possible solutions for a speedy transition and a potential course of action for nations.
Catalytic Hydrogen Production from Methane: A Review on Recent Progress and Prospect
Aug 2020
Publication
Natural gas (Methane) is currently the primary source of catalytic hydrogen production accounting for three quarters of the annual global dedicated hydrogen production (about 70 M tons). Steam–methane reforming (SMR) is the currently used industrial process for hydrogen production. However the SMR process suffers with insufficient catalytic activity low long-term stability and excessive energy input mostly due to the handling of large amount of CO2 coproduced. With the demand for anticipated hydrogen production to reach 122.5 M tons in 2024 novel and upgraded catalytic processes are desired for more effective utilization of precious natural resources. In this review we summarized the major descriptors of catalyst and reaction engineering of the SMR process and compared the SMR process with its derivative technologies such as dry reforming with CO2 (DRM) partial oxidation with O2 autothermal reforming with H2O and O2. Finally we discussed the new progresses of methane conversion: direct decomposition to hydrogen and solid carbon and selective oxidation in mild conditions to hydrogen containing liquid organics (i.e. methanol formic acid and acetic acid) which serve as alternative hydrogen carriers. We hope this review will help to achieve a whole picture of catalytic hydrogen production from methane.
Nuclear-Renewables Energy System for Hydrogen and Electricity Production
May 2011
Publication
In the future the world may have large stranded resources of low-cost wind and solar electricity. Renewable electricity production does not match demand and production is far from major cities. The coupling of nuclear energy with renewables may enable full utilization of nuclear and renewable facilities to meet local electricity demands and export pipeline hydrogen for liquid fuels fertilizer and metals production. Renewables would produce electricity at full capacity in large quantities. The base-load nuclear plants would match electricity production with demand by varying the steam used for electricity versus hydrogen production. High-temperature electrolysis (HTE) would produce hydrogen from water using (a) steam from nuclear plants and (b) electricity from nuclear plants and renewables. During times of peak electricity demand the HTE cells would operate in reverse fuel cell mode to produce power substituting for gas turbines that are used for very few hours per year and that thus have very high electricity costs. The important net hydrogen production would be shipped by pipeline to customers. Local hydrogen storage would enable full utilization of long-distance pipeline capacity with variable production. The electricity and hydrogen production were simulated with real load and wind data to understand under what conditions such systems are economic. The parametric case study uses a wind-nuclear system in North Dakota with hydrogen exported to the Chicago refinery market. North Dakota has some of the best wind conditions in the United States and thus potentially low-cost wind. The methodology allows assessments with different economic and technical assumptions - including what electrolyzer characteristics are most important for economic viability.
Hydrogen Component Leak Rate Quantification for System Risk and Reliability Assessment through QRA and PHM Frameworks
Sep 2021
Publication
The National Renewable Energy Laboratory’s (NREL) Hydrogen Safety Research and Development (HSR&D) program in collaboration with the University of Maryland’s Systems Risk and Reliability Analysis Laboratory (SyRRA) are working to improve reliability and reduce risk in hydrogen systems. This approach strives to use quantitative data on component leaks and failures together with Prognosis and Health Management (PHM) and Quantitative Risk Assessment (QRA) to identify atrisk components reduce component failures and downtime and predict when components require maintenance. Hydrogen component failures increase facility maintenance cost facility downtime and reduce public acceptance of hydrogen technologies ultimately increasing facility size and cost because of conservative design requirements. Leaks are a predominant failure mode for hydrogen components. However uncertainties in the amount of hydrogen emitted from leaking components and the frequency of those failure events limit the understanding of the risks that they present under real-world operational conditions. NREL has deployed a test fixture the Leak Rate Quantification Apparatus (LRQA) to quantify the mass flow rate of leaking gases from medium and high-pressure components that have failed while in service. Quantitative hydrogen leak rate data from this system could ultimately be used to better inform risk assessment and Regulation Codes and Standards (RCS). Parallel activity explores the use of PHM and QRA techniques to assess and reduce risk thereby improving safety and reliability of hydrogen systems. The results of QRAs could further provide a systematic and science-based foundation for the design and implementation of RCS as in the latest versions of the NFPA 2 code for gaseous hydrogen stations. Alternatively data-driven techniques of PHM could provide new damage diagnosis and health-state prognosis tools. This research will help end users station owners and operators and regulatory bodies move towards risk-informed preventative maintenance versus emergency corrective maintenance reducing cost and improving reliability. Predictive modelling of failures could improve safety and affect RCS requirements such as setback distances at liquid hydrogen fueling sites. The combination of leak rate quantification research PHM and QRA can lead to better informed models enabling data-based decision to be made for hydrogen system safety improvements.
Everything About Hydrogen Podcast: Financing the Hydrogen Revolution
Aug 2020
Publication
On this week's episode of Everything About Hydrogen the team are catching up with Astrid Behaghel the Energy Transition expert on hydrogen for BNP Paribas. On the show the team discuss how BNP Paribas see the emerging role of hydrogen in the energy transition how the financing of hydrogen projects differs for newer hydrogen initiatives and why BNP Paribas joined the Hydrogen Council. We also dive into the question of what role can (or even should) Banks play in the evolution and development of the emerging hydrogen market and BNPs plans to expand its activities in this sector. All this and more!
The podcast can be found on their website
The podcast can be found on their website
From Renewable Energy to Sustainable Protein Sources: Advancement, Challenges, and Future Roadmaps
Jan 2022
Publication
The concerns over food security and protein scarcity driven by population increase and higher standards of living have pushed scientists toward finding new protein sources. A considerable proportion of resources and agricultural lands are currently dedicated to proteinaceous feed production to raise livestock and poultry for human consumption. The 1st generation of microbial protein (MP) came into the market as land-independent proteinaceous feed for livestock and aquaculture. However MP may be a less sustainable alternative to conventional feeds such as soybean meal and fishmeal because this technology currently requires natural gas and synthetic chemicals. These challenges have directed researchers toward the production of 2nd generation MP by integrating renewable energies anaerobic digestion nutrient recovery biogas cleaning and upgrading carbon-capture technologies and fermentation. The fermentation of methane-oxidizing bacteria (MOB) and hydrogen-oxidizing bacteria (HOB) i.e. two protein rich microorganisms has shown a great potential on the one hand to upcycle effluents from anaerobic digestion into protein rich biomass and on the other hand to be coupled to renewable energy systems under the concept of Power-to-X. This work compares various production routes for 2nd generation MP by reviewing the latest studies conducted in this context and introducing the state-of-the-art technologies hoping that the findings can accelerate and facilitate upscaling of MP production. The results show that 2nd generation MP depends on the expansion of renewable energies. In countries with high penetration of renewable electricity such as Nordic countries off-peak surplus electricity can be used within MP-industry by supplying electrolytic H2 which is the driving factor for both MOB and HOB-based MP production. However nutrient recovery technologies are the heart of the 2nd generation MP industry as they determine the process costs and quality of the final product. Although huge attempts have been made to date in this context some bottlenecks such as immature nutrient recovery technologies less efficient fermenters with insufficient gas-to-liquid transfer and costly electrolytic hydrogen production and storage have hindered the scale up of MP production. Furthermore further research into techno-economic feasibility and life cycle assessment (LCA) of coupled technologies is still needed to identify key points for improvement and thereby secure a sustainable production system.
Solar Hydrogen Production via a Samarium Oxide-Based Thermochemical Water Splitting Cycle
Apr 2016
Publication
The computational thermodynamic analysis of a samarium oxide-based two-step solar thermochemical water splitting cycle is reported. The analysis is performed using HSC chemistry software and databases. The first (solar-based) step drives the thermal reduction of Sm2O3 into Sm and O2. The second (non-solar) step corresponds to the production of H2 via a water splitting reaction and the oxidation of Sm to Sm2O3. The equilibrium thermodynamic compositions related to the thermal reduction and water splitting steps are determined. The effect of oxygen partial pressure in the inert flushing gas on the thermal reduction temperature (TH) is examined. An analysis based on the second law of thermodynamics is performed to determine the cycle efficiency (ηcycle) and solar-to-fuel energy conversion efficiency (ηsolar´to´fuel) attainable with and without heat recuperation. The results indicate that ηcycle and ηsolar´to´fuel both increase with decreasing TH due to the reduction in oxygen partial pressure in the inert flushing gas. Furthermore the recuperation of heat for the operation of the cycle significantly improves the solar reactor efficiency. For instance in the case where TH = 2280 K ηcycle = 24.4% and ηsolar´to´fuel = 29.5% (without heat recuperation) while ηcycle = 31.3% and ηsolar´to´fuel = 37.8% (with 40% heat recuperation).
Charting a Course for Decarbonizing Maritime Transport
Apr 2021
Publication
As the backbone of global trade international maritime transport connects the world and facilitates economic growth and development especially in developing countries. However producing around three percent of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and emitting around 15 percent of some of the world’s major air pollutants shipping is a major contributor to climate change and air pollution. To mitigate its negative environmental impact shipping needs to abandon fossil-based bunker fuels and turn to zero-carbon alternatives. This report the “Summary for Policymakers and Industry” summarizes recent World Bank research on decarbonizing the maritime sector. The analysis identifies green ammonia and hydrogen as the most promising zero-carbon bunker fuels within the maritime industry at present. These fuels strike the most advantageous balance of favorable features relating to their lifecycle GHG emissions broader environmental factors scalability economics and technical and safety implications. The analysis also identifies that LNG will likely only play a limited role in shipping’s energy transition due to concerns over methane slip and stranded assets. Crucially the research reveals that decarbonizing maritime transport offers unique business and development opportunities for developing countries. Developing countries with large renewable energy resources could take advantage of the new and emerging future zero-carbon bunker fuel market estimated at over $1 trillion to establish new export markets while also modernizing their own domestic energy and industrial infrastructure. However strategic policy interventions are needed to hasten the sector’s energy transition.
Everything About Hydrogen Podcast: Producing Hydrogen with Wind Energy
Sep 2022
Publication
On this episode of Everything About Hydrogen we are speaking with David Wellard Regulatory Affairs Manager at Orsted. Orsted is a global leader in renewable energy generation projects particularly when it comes to the rapidly expanding wind energy sector. Headquartered in Denmark the company has a global reach across multiple continents and technologies. David helps lead Orsted’s policy and regulatory engagement in the United Kingdom and beyond. We are excited to have him with us to discuss how Orsted is looking at and deploying hydrogen technologies and how they expect to utilized hydrogen in a decarbonized energy future.
The podcast can be found on their website.
The podcast can be found on their website.
Seasonal Hydrogen Storage for Sustainable Renewable Energy Integration in the Electricity Sector: A Case Study of Finland
Nov 2021
Publication
Wind power is rapidly growing in the Finnish grid and Finland’s electricity consumption is low in the summer compared to the winter. Hence there is a need for storage that can absorb a large amount of energy during summer and discharge it during winter. This study examines one such storage technology geological hydrogen storage which has the potential to store energy on a GWh scale and also over longer periods of time. Finland’s electricity generation system was modelled with and without hydrogen storage using the LEAP-NEMO modeling toolkit. The results showed about 69% decline in carbon dioxide emissions as well as a decline in the fossil fuel-based power accompanied with a higher capability to meet demand with less imports in both scenarios. Finally a critical analysis of the Finnish electricity mix with and without hydrogen storage is presented.
Everything About Hydrogen Podcast: A Green Future for Oman
Feb 2023
Publication
On this episode of Everything About Hydrogen we are speaking with Nashwa Al Rawahy Director of HMR Environmental Consultants based in Muscat Oman with regional offices in the United Arab Emirates.
We are excited to have an expert like Nashwa join us to discuss environmental and social impact studies their value to the communities and projects and the importance of building long term In Country Value (ICV).
The podcast can be found on their website.
We are excited to have an expert like Nashwa join us to discuss environmental and social impact studies their value to the communities and projects and the importance of building long term In Country Value (ICV).
The podcast can be found on their website.
Everything About Hydrogen Podcast: Using the Law and Regulation to Facilitate Hydrogen Development
Jun 2022
Publication
Burges Salmon’s energy lawyers are known for ground-breaking work in the energy power and utilities sector. They understand the opportunities the technologies and the challenges which the sector presents. Their reputation has been built upon first-of-a-kind projects and deals and an intimate knowledge of energy regulation. Burges Salmon specialists provide expert advice throughout the project/plant life cycle. Over the years this has in turn led to investors and funders requesting their services in the knowledge that they understand the key issues technologies face. They have a team of over 80 lawyers who focus on helping developers investors and funders achieve their aims in the sector. The team has won or been shortlisted for all the key industry awards in energy over the last decade.
The podcast can be found on their website
The podcast can be found on their website
Everything About Hydrogen Podcast: Building an Integrated Clean Hydrogen Infrastructure from the Ground Up
Nov 2021
Publication
On this episode of EAH we are joined by Andrew Clennett Co-Founder and CEO of Hiringa Energy. Hiringa is headquartered in New Zealand where they are building clean hydrogen production projects using renewable energy to displace the use of fossil fuels for transport and industrial feedstock across New Zealand. We are delighted to have Andrew with us today to speak about how Hiringa are using hydrogen to change the energy and carbon landscape of New Zealand.
This podcast can be found on their website
This podcast can be found on their website
Ex Situ Thermo-catalytic Upgrading of Biomass Pyrolysis Vapors Using a Traveling Wave Microwave Reactor
Sep 2016
Publication
Microwave heating offers a number of advantages over conventional heating methods such as rapid and volumetric heating precise temperature control energy efficiency and lower temperature gradient. In this article we demonstrate the use of 2450 MHz microwave traveling wave reactor to heat the catalyst bed for thermo-catalytic upgrading of pyrolysis vapors. HZSM-5 catalyst was tested at three different temperatures (290 330 and 370°C) at a catalyst to biomass ratio of 2. Results were compared with conventional heating and induction heating method of catalyst bed. The yields of aromatic compounds and coke deposition were dependent on temperature and method of heating. Microwave heating yielded higher aromatic compounds and lower coke deposition. Microwave heating was also energy efficient compared to conventional reactors. The rate of catalyst deterioration was lower for catalyst heated in microwave system.
Everything About Hydrogen Podcast: Changing the Game in Hydrogen Compression
Oct 2021
Publication
In the second episode of EAH's Season 3 Patrick Andrew and Chris sit down with Maria Fennis CEO of HyET. HyET Hydrogen is a leading SME in the field of electrochemical hydrogen compression founded in 2008. HyET has introduced the first commercially viable Electrochemical Hydrogen Compressor (EHPC) the HCS 100 in 2017. HyET enters partnerships with key stakeholders to develop products with a focus on application. Maria is a leading voice in the compression arena and it is a pleasure to have her on the show!
The podcast can be found on their website
The podcast can be found on their website
Storable Energy Production from Wind over Water
Apr 2020
Publication
The current status of a project is described which aims to demonstrate the technical and economic feasibility of converting the vast wind energy available over the globe’s oceans and lakes into storable energy. To this end autonomous high-performance sailing ships are equipped with hydrokinetic turbines whose output is stored either in electric batteries or is fed into electrolysers to produce hydrogen which then is compressed and stored in tanks. In the present paper the previous analytical studies which showed the potential of this “energy ship concept” are summarized and progress on its hardware demonstration is reported involving the conversion of a model sailboat to autonomous operation. The paper concludes with a discussion of the potential of this concept to achieve the IPCC-mandated requirement of reducing the global CO2 emissions by about 45% by 2030 reaching net zero by 2050.
Everything About Hydrogen Podcast: Envisioning the Hydrogen Revolution
May 2021
Publication
For our 40th episode of the Everything About Hydrogen podcast the gang are joined by hydrogen luminary Marco Alverà the CEO of Snam. Founded in 1941 and listed on the Italian stock exchange since 2001 Snam is a leader in the European gas market and operator of over 41000km of transport networks. Hailed as a visionary who has led the pivot of the world’s 2nd largest gas distribution company towards a clean gas trajectory Marco is widely recognized as a thought leader and a key figure driving the transition towards hydrogen. On the show the team discuss why Marco decided to lead Snam's pivot towards hydrogen what he sees as the role of hydrogen in the energy transition and how blue hydrogen can sit alongside green hydrogen as part of the solution to a decarbonized gas network.
The podcast can be found on their website
The podcast can be found on their website
Everything About Hydrogen Podcast: Building Hydrogen Infrastructure with Black & Veatch
Feb 2020
Publication
On this weeks episode the team are talking all things hydrogen with Maryline Daviaud Lewett Director of Business Development for Transformative Technologies at Black & Veatch (B&V). On the show we discuss the role that Engineering Procurement and Construction (EPC) firms are playing in developing hydrogen and fuel cell infrastructure as well as discussing the unique aspects of developing projects in North America. As the leading EPC for hydrogen refuelling stations in North America and a wealth of experience across electric vehicle charging and hydrogen Maryline brings a uniquely well rounded perspective to the discussion and shares a wealth of insights for how the market may evolve. All this and more on the show!
The podcast can be found on their website
The podcast can be found on their website
Carbon Capture from Biogas by Deep Eutectic Solvents A COSMO Study to Evaluate the Effect of Impurities on Solubility and Selectivity
Jun 2021
Publication
Deep eutectic solvents (DES) are compounds of a hydrogen bond donor (HBD) and a hydrogen bond acceptor (HBA) that contain a depressed melting point compared to their individual constituents. DES have been studied for their use as carbon capture media and biogas upgrading. However contaminants’ presence in biogas might affect the carbon capture by DES. In this study conductor-like screening model for real solvents (COSMO-RS) was used to determine the effect of temperature pressure and selective contaminants on five DES’ namely choline chloride-urea choline chloride-ethylene glycol tetra butyl ammonium chloride-ethylene glycol tetra butyl ammonium bromide-decanoic acid and tetra octyl ammonium chloride-decanoic acid. Impurities studied in this paper are hydrogen sulfide ammonia water nitrogen octamethyltrisiloxane and decamethylcyclopentasiloxane. At infinite dilution CO2 solubility dependence upon temperature in each DES was examined by means of Henry’s Law constants. Next the systems were modeled from infinite dilution to equilibrium using the modified Raoults’ Law where CO2 solubility dependence upon pressure was examined. Finally solubility of CO2 and CH4 in the various DES were explored with the presence of varying mole percent of selective contaminants. Among the parameters studied it was found that the HBD of the solvent is the most determinant factor for the effectiveness of CO2 solubility. Other factors affecting the solubility are alkyl chain length of the HBA the associated halogen and the resulting polarity of the DES. It was also found that choline chloride-urea is the most selective to CO2 but has the lowest CO2 solubility and is the most polar among other solvents. On the other hand tetraoctylammonium chloride-decanoic acid is the least selective has the highest maximum CO2 solubility is the least polar and is the least affected by its environment.
Everything About Hydrogen Podcast: Hydrogen 101
Aug 2019
Publication
A 10-minute tour of hydrogen industry technology and terminology for those who are new to the sector or who would simply like a quick review of the basics behind this burgeoning energy source.
Podcast can be found on their website
Podcast can be found on their website
Everything About Hydrogen Podcast: Ending on a Hy Note
Jul 2021
Publication
This week's show is the last episode of Season 2! To celebrate we invited our friend and colleague Markus Wilthaner partner at McKinsey & Company to come speak with us. Markus has been a leader in the hydrogen space for the past ten years and has drafted a number of the Hydrogen Council's reports since its founding including the newly released - and highly anticipated - Hydrogen Insights 2021 (link below). In this episode we speak with Markus about the state of the market and the innovation he has seen in the last couple of years that make hydrogen a critical part of the energy transition. We had a lot of fun recording this interview and it was the perfect way to end a fantastic EAH season!
The podcast can be found on their website
The podcast can be found on their website
Everything About Hydrogen Podcast: Masters of Scale: How to Build the Hydrogen Infrastructure of the Future
Oct 2020
Publication
On this week's episode the EAH team speaks with Prof. Armin Schnettler CEO of New Energy Business at Siemens Energy to talk about where green hydrogen solutions fit into the path to decarbonisation how companies like Siemens are looking at those solutions and working to scale them to meet future demand timelines for deployment in different markets how governments can help the private sector and much much more.
The podcast can be found on their website
The podcast can be found on their website
US-UK Scientific Forum on Sustainable Energy: Electrical Storage in Support of the Grid, Forum Report
Sep 2022
Publication
The effort to meet the ambitious targets of the Paris agreement is challenging many governments. The US and UK governments might have different approaches to achieving the targets but both will rely heavily on renewable energy sources such as wind and solar to power their economies. However these sources of power are unpredictable and ways will have to be developed to store renewable energy for hours days weeks seasons and maybe even years before it is used. As the disruptive and increasingly deadly impacts of climate change are being felt across the world the need to move to more sustainable sources of energy and to identify viable ways to store that energy has never been more important.<br/>This was the subject of the US–UK Science Forum on electrical storage in support of the grid which was held online from 17 – 18 March 2021. Co-organised by the Royal Society and the National Academy of Sciences it brought together a diverse group of 60 scientists policy makers industry leaders regulators and other key stakeholders for a wide-ranging discussion on all aspects of energy storage from the latest research in the field to the current status of deployment. It also considered the current national and international economic and policy contexts in which these developments are taking place. A number of key points emerged from the discussion. First it is clear that renewable energy will play an increasingly important role in the US and UK energy systems of the future and energy storage at a multi-terawatt hour scale has a vital role to play. Of course this will evolve differently to some extent in both countries and elsewhere according to the various geographical technological economic political social and regulatory environments. Second international collaboration is critical – no single nation will solve this problem alone. As two of the world’s leading scientific nations largest economies and per capita CO2 emitters with a long track record of collaboration the US and UK are well placed to play a vital role in addressing this critical challenge. As the discussion highlighted a wide range of energy storage technologies are now emerging and becoming increasingly available many of which have the potential to be critical components of a future net-zero energy system. A crucial next phase is in ensuring that these are technically developed as well as economically and political viable. This will require the support of a wide range of these potential solutions to ensure that their benefits remain widely available and to avoid costly ‘lock-in’. Scientists and science academies have a critical role to play in analysing technology options their combinations and their potential roles in future sustainable energy systems and in working with policymakers to incentivise investment and deployment.
Everything About Hydrogen Podcast: Improving PEM Efficiency
Jan 2023
Publication
On this episode of EAH we sat down with Alejandro Oyarce Barnett Chief Technology Officer and Co-Founder at Hystar. Hystar is a technology-focused company specializing in PEM electrolysers for hydrogen production using renewable energy. The company got its start as a spin-off from SINTEF one of Europe’s largest independent research organizations and has raised private funding so the company can focus on production of its high-efficiency PEM units and keep pace with demand for hydrogen generation capacity. Hystar announced on January 11 2023 that the company has closed a Series B funding round of USD 26mn to rapidly scale-up to full commercial operations with an automated GW-capacity production line by 2025. Alejandro joined us to discuss in more detail the origins of Hystar its technology and the mission at the core of the company.
The podcast can be found on their website.
The podcast can be found on their website.
Molten Carbonate Fuel Cells for Simultaneous CO2 Capture, Power Generation, and H2 Generation
Mar 2022
Publication
This article presents a new technology for the generation of power and steam or other process heat with very low CO2 emissions. It is well known that cogeneration of electricity and steam is highly efficient and that amine units can be used to remove CO2 from combustion flue gas but that the amine unit consumes a significant amount of steam and power reducing the overall system efficiency. In this report the use of molten carbonate fuel cells (MCFCs) to capture CO2 from cogen units is investigated and shown to be highly efficient due to the additional power that they produce while capturing the CO2. Furthermore the MCFCs are capable of reforming methane to hydrogen simultaneous to the power production and CO2 capture. This hydrogen can either be recycled as fuel for consumption by the cogen or MCFCs or exported to an independent combustion unit as low carbon fuel thereby decarbonizing that unit as well. The efficiency of MCFCs for CO2 capture is higher than use of amines in all cases studied often by a substantial margin while at the same time the MCFCs avoid more CO2 than the amine technology. As one example the use of amines on a cogeneration unit can avoid 87.6% of CO2 but requires 4.91 MJ/kg of additional primary energy to do so. In contrast the MCFCs avoid 89.4% of CO2 but require only 1.37 MJ/kg of additional primary energy. The high thermal efficiency and hydrogen export option demonstrate the potential of this technology for widespread deployment in a low carbon energy economy.
Advances in Hydrogen, Carbon Dioxide, and Hydrocarbon Gas Sensor Technology Using GaN and ZnO-Based Devices
Jun 2009
Publication
In this paper we review our recent results in developing gas sensors for hydrogen using various device structures including ZnO nanowires and GaN High Electron Mobility Transistors (HEMTs). ZnO nanowires are particularly interesting because they have a large surface area to volume ratio which will improve sensitivity and because they operate at low current levels will have low power requirements in a sensor module. GaN-based devices offer the advantage of the HEMT structure high temperature operation and simple integration with existing fabrication technology and sensing systems. Improvements in sensitivity recoverability and reliability are presented. Also reported are demonstrations of detection of other gases including CO2 and C2H4 using functionalized GaN HEMTs. This is critical for the development of lab-on-a-chip type systems and can provide a significant advance towards a market-ready sensor application.
Everything About Hydrogen Podcast: 'Having Hydrogen for Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner'
Apr 2023
Publication
On today’s show Chris Patrick and Alicia speak with Petra Schwager from UNIDO about her work promoting global green hydrogen development with particular emphasis on the Global South.
The podcast can be found on their website.
The podcast can be found on their website.
Comparative Levelized Cost Analysis of Transmitting Renewable Solar Energy
Feb 2023
Publication
A bottom-up cost analysis for delivering utility-scale PV-generated electricity as hydrogen through pipelines and as electricity through power is undertaken. Techno-economic generation and demand data for California are used to calculate the levelized cost of transmitting (LCOT) energy and the levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) prior to distribution. High-voltage levels of 230 kV and 500 kV and 24-inch and 36-inch pipelines for 100 to 700 miles of transmission are considered. At 100 miles of transmission the cost of transmission between each medium is comparable. At longer distances the pipeline scenarios become increasingly cheaper at low utilization levels. The all-electric pathways utilizing battery energy storage systems can meet 95% of the load for as low as 356 USD/MWh whereas when meeting 100% of load with the hydrogen gas turbine and fuel cell pathways the costs are 278 and 322 USD/MWh respectively.
A Review of Ni Based Powder Catalyst for Urea Oxidation in Assisting Water Splitting Reaction
Jan 2022
Publication
Water splitting has been regarded as a sustainable and environmentally-friendly technique to realize green hydrogen generation while more energy is consumed due to the high overpotentials required for the anode oxygen evolution reaction. Urea electrooxidation an ideal substitute is thus received increasing attention in assisting water-splitting reactions. Note that highly efficient catalysts are still required to drive urea oxidation and the facile generation of high valence state species is significant in the reaction based on the electrochemical-chemical mechanisms. The high cost and rareness make the noble metal catalysts impossible for further consideration in large-scale application. Ni-based catalysts are very promising due to their cheap price facile structure tuning good compatibility and easy active phase formation. In the light of the significant advances made recently herein we reviewed the recent advances of Ni-based powder catalysts for urea oxidation in assisting water-splitting reaction. The fundamental of urea oxidation is firstly presented to clarify the mechanism of urea-assisted water splitting and then the prevailing evaluation indicators are briefly expressed based on the electrochemical measurements. The catalyst design principle including synergistic effect electronic effect defect construction and surface reconstruction as well as the main fabrication approaches are presented and the advances of various Ni-based powder catalysts for urea assisted water splitting are summarized and discussed. The problems and challenges are also concluded for the Ni-based powder catalysts fabrication the performance evaluation and their application. Considering the key influence factors for catalytic process and their application attention should be given to structure-property relationship deciphering novel Ni-based powder catalysts development and their construction in the real device; specifically the effort should be directed to the Ni-based powder catalyst with multi-functions to simultaneously promote the fundamental steps and high anti-corrosion ability by revealing the local structure reconstruction as well as the integration in the practical application. We believe the current summarization will be instructive and helpful for the Ni-based powder catalysts development and understanding their catalytic action for urea-assisted hydrogen generation via water splitting technique.
Direct Numerical Simulation of Hydrogen Combustion at Auto-ignitive Conditions Ignition, Stability and Turbulent Reaction-front Velocity
Mar 2021
Publication
Direct Numerical Simulations (DNS) are performed to investigate the process of spontaneous ignition of hydrogen flames at laminar turbulent adiabatic and non-adiabatic conditions. Mixtures of hydrogen and vitiated air at temperatures representing gas-turbine reheat combustion are considered. Adiabatic spontaneous ignition processes are investigated first providing a quantitative characterization of stable and unstable flames. Results indicate that in hydrogen reheat combustion compressibility effects play a key role in flame stability and that unstable ignition and combustion are consistently encountered for reactant temperatures close to the mixture’s characteristic crossover temperature. Furthermore it is also found that the characterization of the adiabatic processes is also valid in the presence of non-adiabaticity due to wall heat-loss. Finally a quantitative characterization of the instantaneous fuel consumption rate within the reaction front is obtained and of its ability at auto-ignitive conditions to advance against the approaching turbulent flow of the reactants for a range of different turbulence intensities temperatures and pressure levels.
Green Synthesis of Olefin-linked Covalent Organic Frameworks for Hydrogen Fuel Cell Applications
Mar 2021
Publication
Green synthesis of crystalline porous materials for energy-related applications is of great significance but very challenging. Here we create a green strategy to fabricate a highly crystalline olefin-linked pyrazine-based covalent organic framework (COF) with high robustness and porosity under solvent-free conditions. The abundant nitrogen sites high hydrophilicity and well-defined one-dimensional nanochannels make the resulting COF an ideal platform to confine and stabilize the H3PO4 network in the pores through hydrogen-bonding interactions. The resulting material exhibits low activation energy (Ea) of 0.06 eV and ultrahigh proton conductivity across a wide relative humidity (10–90 %) and temperature range (25–80 °C). A realistic proton exchange membrane fuel cell using the olefin-linked COF as the solid electrolyte achieve a maximum power of 135 mW cm−2 and a current density of 676 mA cm−2 which exceeds all reported COF materials.
Sector Coupling via Hydrogen to Lower the Cost of Energy System Decarbonization
Aug 2021
Publication
There is growing interest in using hydrogen (H2) as a long-duration energy storage resource in a future electric grid dominated by variable renewable energy (VRE) generation. Modeling H2 use exclusively for grid-scale energy storage often referred to as ‘‘power-to-gas-to-power (P2G2P)’’ overlooks the cost-sharing and CO2 emission benefits from using the deployed H2 assets to decarbonize other end-use sectors where direct electrification is challenging. Here we develop a generalized framework for co-optimizing infrastructure investments across the electricity and H2 supply chains accounting for the spatio-temporal variations in energy demand and supply. We apply this sector-coupling framework to the U.S. Northeast under a range of technology cost and carbon price scenarios and find greater value of power-to-H2 (P2G) vs. P2G2P routes. Specifically P2G provides grid flexibility to support VRE integration without the round-trip efficiency penalty and additional cost incurred by P2G2P routes. This form of sector coupling leads to: (a) VRE generation increase by 13–56% and (b) total system cost (and levelized costs of energy) reduction by 7–16% under deep decarbonization scenarios. Both effects increase as H2 demand for other end-uses increases more than doubling for a 97% decarbonization scenario as H2 demand quadruples. We also find that the grid flexibility enabled by sector coupling makes deployment of carbon capture and storage (CCS) for power generation less cost-effective than its use for low-carbon H2 production. These findings highlight the importance of using an integrated energy system framework with multiple energy vectors in planning cost-effective energy system decarbonization
Everything About Hydrogen Podcast: Can CUTRIC Clean Canada?
Mar 2021
Publication
When the pandemic recedes lockdowns and restrictions are relaxed and eventually eliminated and millions of residents in cities across the world begin to return to their offices and workplaces public transit systems will once again be at the core of billions of commuters' daily activities. Urban transit systems are designed to move huge volumes of people through cities and communities quickly reliably and cost-efficiently (some systems accomplish these goals better than others!). The energy needed to run these networks of cars trains and buses is enormous and today most of it comes from fossil fuels. How can communities - both large and small - redesign their transit systems to eliminate operational carbon emissions in the future?
The podcast can be found on their website
The podcast can be found on their website
Everything About Hydrogen Podcast: Decarbonising the Gas Grid with Cadent
Mar 2020
Publication
On this weeks episode the team are talking all things hydrogen with Lorna Millington Future Networks Manager in the Safety and Network Strategy team at Cadent. On the show we discuss the role that Cadent and other gas distribution network operators (GDNOs) are playing in supporting the transition towards a low (and eventually zero) carbon gas grid through the use of hydrogen. The potential for hydrogen to support decarbonisation of heat through the gas network is one of the most exciting emerging themes for countries that have large existing gas networks and who are looking to repurpose those assets towards national net zero objectives. As a leader on hydrogen into the gas grid projects Cadent offer a wealth of knowledge around the potential opportunities and considerations for displacing natural gas with hydrogen over time. And given the chance to reduce up to 6 million tonnes of CO2 a year through using more hydrogen in the gas grid this is a show you won’t want to miss! All this and more on the show!
The podcast can be found on their website
The podcast can be found on their website
Everything About Hydrogen Podcast: ITM Power
Sep 2019
Publication
On this weeks show we discuss with Graham Cooley the CEO of ITM Power how his company has expanded from a research company on AIM in the early 2000’s to one of the largest electrolyser manufacturers in the world. On the show we also ask Graham to talk about how the hydrogen market has evolved where he sees the potential growth trajectory for the industry and how ITM sees its role within this space.
The podcast can be found on their website
The podcast can be found on their website
Everything About Hydrogen Podcast: Giga-watt it Takes to Scale Green Hydrogen (and Ammonia)
Feb 2021
Publication
How do we get green hydrogen (and green ammonia) production to scale and make it cost competitive? It's a great question and we ask it all the time on the show. Well Alicia Eastman Co-founder & Managing Director of InterContinental Energy (ICE) may be one of the best authorities in the world on this topic and she joins us on this episode of EAH to tell the team all about her and ICE's work developing the Asian Renewable Energy Hub (AREH). Located in Western Australia the AREH when completed will be the largest renewable energy project by total generation capacity on the planet. At 26 GW it surpasses even the likes of the Three Gorges Dam and will act as a central production and distribution point for huge quantities of clean hydrogen and ammonia for offtakers and customers across APAC and beyond. The AREH is a truly massive project that has global implications for the global energy landscape of the future.
The podcast can be found on their website.
The podcast can be found on their website.
Ignition of Hydrogen-air Mixtures Under Volumetric Expansion Conditions
Sep 2017
Publication
A better understanding of chemical kinetics under volumetric expansion is important for a number of situations relevant to industrial safety including detonation diffraction and direct initiation reflected shock-ignition at obstacles ignition behind a decaying shock among others. The ignition of stoichiometric hydrogen-air mixtures was studied using 0D numerical simulations with time-dependent specific volume variations. The competition between chemical energy release and expansion-induced cooling was characterized for different cooling rates and mathematical forms describing the shock decay rate. The critical conditions for reaction quenching were systematically determined and the thermo-chemistry dynamics were analyzed near the critical conditions.
Everything About Hydrogen Podcast: Hydrogen: The Next Generation
May 2021
Publication
This is the inaugural episode of the EAH: Deep Dive podcast mini-series! Our first episode features the co-founders of Enapter Vaitea Cowan and Jan Justus-Schmidt. Enapter is a young company that has made a big splash in the hydrogen space with their modular scalable AEM electrolyzer technology. Last year they made headlines with their successful public offering on the DAX and the company is expected to be a the forefront of the hydrogen sector again in 2021 as they begin construction of their mass production facility in Germany and announce the upcoming Generation Hydrogen event on May 19 2021.
The podcast can be found on their website
The podcast can be found on their website
Everything About Hydrogen Podcast: A New Hope for Hydrogen?
Apr 2020
Publication
On this weeks episode the team discuss the Hydrogen Council the global stakeholder forum that has been at the forefront of efforts to advance the role of hydrogen and fuel cell technologies globally. We are excited to have as our guests Pierre-Etienne Franc Vice President for the Hydrogen Energy World Business Unit at Air Liquide and Stephan Herbst General Manager at Toyota Motor Europe. On the show we discuss why Air Liquide and Toyota decided to engage with the Council its strategy vision and perspective on the role that hydrogen can play in the energy transition and how companies can work with policymakers to enable this process. All this and more on the show!
The podcast can be found on their website
The podcast can be found on their website
Development of Liquid Hydrogen Leak Frequencies Using a Bayesian Update Process
Sep 2021
Publication
To quantify the risk of an accident in a liquid hydrogen system it is necessary to determine how often a leak may occur. To do this representative component leakage frequencies specific to liquid hydrogen can be determined as a function of the normalized leak size. Subsequently the system characteristics (e.g. system pressure) can be used to calculate accident consequences. Operating data (such as leak frequencies) for liquid hydrogen systems are very limited; rather than selecting a single leak frequency value from a literature source data from different sources can be combined using a Bayesian model. This approach provides leakage rates for different amounts of leakage distributions for leakage rates to propagate through risk assessment models to establish risk result uncertainty and a means for incorporating liquid hydrogen-specific leakage data with leakage frequencies from other fuels. Specifically other cryogenic fluids like liquefied natural gas are used as a baseline for the Bayesian analysis. This Bayesian update process is used to develop leak frequency distributions for different system component types and leak sizes. These leak frequencies can be refined as liquid hydrogen data becomes available and may then inform safety code requirements based on the likelihood of liquid hydrogen release for different systems.
Toward Design of Synergistically Active Carbon-Based Catalysts for Electrocatalytic Hydrogen Evolution
Apr 2014
Publication
Replacement of precious catalyst with cost-effective alternatives would be significantly beneficial for hydrogen production via electrocatalytic hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). All candidates thus far are exclusively metallic catalysts which suffer inherent corrosion and oxidation susceptibility during acidic proton-exchange membrane electrolysis. Herein based on theoretical predictions we designed and synthesized nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) dual-doped graphene as a non-metallic electrocatalyst for sustainable and efficient hydrogen production. The N and Phetero-atoms could coactivate the adjacent C atom in the graphene matrix by affecting its valence orbital energy levels to induce a synergistically enhanced reactivity toward HER. As a result the dual-doped graphene showed higher electrocatalytic HER activity than single-doped ones and comparable performance to some of the traditional metallic catalysts.
Finding Synergy Between Renewables and Coal: Flexible Power and Hydrogen Production from Advanced IGCC Plants with Integrated CO2 Capture
Feb 2021
Publication
Variable renewable energy (VRE) has seen rapid growth in recent years. However VRE deployment requires a fleet of dispatchable power plants to supply electricity during periods with limited wind and sunlight. These plants will operate at reduced utilization rates that pose serious economic challenges. To address this challenge this paper presents the techno-economic assessment of flexible power and hydrogen production from integrated gasification combined cycles (IGCC) employing the gas switching combustion (GSC) technology for CO2 capture and membrane assisted water gas shift (MAWGS) reactors for hydrogen production. Three GSC-MAWGS-IGCC plants are evaluated based on different gasification technologies: Shell High Temperature Winkler and GE. These advanced plants are compared to two benchmark IGCC plants one without and one with CO2 capture. All plants utilize state-of-the-art H-class gas turbines and hot gas clean-up for maximum efficiency. Under baseload operation the GSC plants returned CO2 avoidance costs in the range of 24.9–36.9 €/ton compared to 44.3 €/ton for the benchmark. However the major advantage of these plants is evident in the more realistic mid-load scenario. Due to the ability to keep operating and sell hydrogen to the market during times of abundant wind and sun the best GSC plants offer a 6–11%-point higher annual rate of return than the benchmark plant with CO2 capture. This large economic advantage shows that the flexible GSC plants are a promising option for balancing VRE provided a market for the generated clean hydrogen exists.
On the Climate Impacts of Blue Hydrogen Production
Nov 2021
Publication
Natural gas based hydrogen production with carbon capture and storage is referred to as blue hydrogen. If substantial amounts of CO2 from natural gas reforming are captured and permanently stored such hydrogen could be a low-carbon energy carrier. However recent research raises questions about the effective climate impacts of blue hydrogen from a life cycle perspective. Our analysis sheds light on the relevant issues and provides a balanced perspective on the impacts on climate change associated with blue hydrogen. We show that such impacts may indeed vary over large ranges and depend on only a few key parameters: the methane emission rate of the natural gas supply chain the CO2 removal rate at the hydrogen production plant and the global warming metric applied. State-of-the-art reforming with high CO2 capture rates combined with natural gas supply featuring low methane emissions does indeed allow for substantial reduction of greenhouse gas emissions compared to both conventional natural gas reforming and direct combustion of natural gas. Under such conditions blue hydrogen is compatible with low-carbon economies and exhibits climate change impacts at the upper end of the range of those caused by hydrogen production from renewable-based electricity. However neither current blue nor green hydrogen production pathways render fully “net-zero” hydrogen without additional CO2 removal.
The Hydrogen Economy and Jobs of the Future
Nov 2018
Publication
Growth in the hydrogen and fuel cell industries will lead to vast new employment opportunities and these will be created in a wide variety of industries skills tasks and earnings. Many of these jobs do not currently exist and do not have occupational titles defined in official classifications. In addition many of these jobs require different skills and education than current jobs and training requirements must be assessed so that this rapidly growing part of the economy has a sufficient supply of trained and qualified workers. We discuss the current hydrogen economy and technologies. We then identify by occupational titles the new jobs that will be created in the expanding hydrogen/fuel cell economy estimate the average US salary for each job identify the minimum educational attainment required to gain entry into that occupation and specify the recommended university degree for the advanced educational requirements. We provide recommendations for further research.
Everything About Hydrogen Podcast: Why the Fuel Cell World is Different This Time
Aug 2019
Publication
The fuel cell game is not new and for many it is has been a long time coming. Few know this better than Ballard Power Systems the third ever founded Fuel Cell company that has operated since the 1970s. On the show we ask Nicolas Pocard about Ballards history and why this time the market is different for fuel cell companies.
The podcast can be found on their website
The podcast can be found on their website
The Role of Hydrogen in Achieving Long Term Japanese Energy System Goals
Sep 2020
Publication
This research qualitatively reviews literature regarding energy system modeling in Japan specific to the future hydrogen economy leveraging quantitative model outcomes to establish the potential future deployment of hydrogen in Japan. The analysis focuses on the four key sectors of storage supplementing the gas grid power generation and transportation detailing the potential range of hydrogen technologies which are expected to penetrate Japanese energy markets up to 2050 and beyond. Alongside key model outcomes the appropriate policy settings governance and market mechanisms are described which underpin the potential hydrogen economy future for Japan. We find that transportation gas grid supplementation and storage end-uses may emerge in significant quantities due to policies which encourage ambitious implementation targets investment in technologies and research and development and the emergence of a future carbon pricing regime. On the other hand for Japan which will initially be dependent on imported hydrogen the cost of imports appears critical to the emergence of broad hydrogen usage particularly in the power generation sector. Further the consideration of demographics in Japan recognizing the aging shrinking population and peoples’ energy use preferences will likely be instrumental in realizing a smooth transition toward a hydrogen economy.
Everything About Hydrogen Podcast: Championing a Clean Energy Future
Nov 2021
Publication
With COP starting this week we discuss with the HLC team the role of hydrogen in decarbonization and the critical need for hydrogen to scale quickly. Andrew and Patrick sit down with Kieran Coleman Energy & Industry Lead for the United Nations COP High Level Champions to chat about the work being done in advance of COP with partners and the level of ambition we’ve seen across various sectors about the future of hydrogen and a lot more!
The podcast can be found on their website
The podcast can be found on their website
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