Mats W. Lundberg, sustainable business manager at Sandvik Materials Technology, explains the benefits of hydrogen, the Swiss Army Knife of sustainable fuel technology.
Technology fanatics might recall Elon Musk’s description of fuel cell technology: “fool cells,” he called them. Yet, while the Tesla CEO’s disapproval of this method for powering EVs is clear, many automakers appear to disagree. In fact, the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA) has called upon policy makers to ramp-up investments in hydrogen refuelling infrastructure across the European Union (EU), a move that could positively contribute to the EU’s overall decarbonisation agenda.
Driving sustainability
The transport industry has good reason to dig deep for hydrogen technology. EVs and battery technologies are driving their own green revolution, but hydrogen shows promise where battery-based electrification may fall short.
While lighter vehicles, such as cars, can easily take advantage of ever-improving battery technologies, such solutions may be less viable for heavier transport — both in terms of charging times and the sheer weight of the batteries needed. Question marks also hang over whether charging a growing vehicle fleet will place new strains on the electrical grid.
We cannot take away from the potential of battery electric vehicles. After all, the technology will be central to initiatives such as that in the UK, which plans to ban the production of new diesel and petrol vehicles by 2035 as part of its Net Zero initiatives. Governments across the globe are right to focus on batteries as key to decarbonisation, but hydrogen makes for another obvious contender.
Energy-dense hydrogen can be used in a fuel cell, which converts energy stored in molecules into electrical energy. By using hydrogen and oxygen as power, the fuel cell produces water, electricity and heat without creating any emissions other than water vapour.
But, aside from contributing to ambitions of achieving a Net Zero footprint, hydrogen has a range of possible applications that make it a Swiss Army Knife, of sorts, among sustainable fuel technologies. One advantage is that hydrogen stations can use the renewable energy on-site to create hydrogen. This means that, as well as the process being eco-friendly, re-fuelling does not have to be connected to a wider refuelling network or grid.
Concept trucks, such as Chevrolet’s ZH2, further ignite the multifaceted potential of this fuel source. Developed in collaboration with the US military, the vehicle’s hydrogen fuel storage boasts near-silent operation, water by-product that could be collected and converted into drinking water and a mobile fuel pack that can act as a power generator to give the truck potential to become another multi-purpose defence weapon in its own right.
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A network of potential
There are many more tools on the “hydrogen Swiss Army Knife” besides those for the automotive industry. Investment isn’t limited to automakers, and Germany alone has recently announced a plan to spend 7 billion euros on hydrogen as part of an economic stimulus package. Meanwhile, the International Energy Agency (IEA) has called for hydrogen technologies to be rolled-out for the energy system on a global scale.
There is little to stop many countries, especially across Europe, from switching their entire gas network over to hydrogen. The switch would eliminate gas, one of the largest sources of carbon emissions, provided the hydrogen was produced using renewable resources.
If we take a look at Europe’s gas pipeline infrastructure, it’s clear that such a system would not need to be built from scratch. Belgium’s gas pipe network already consists of some 17,000 kilometres of pipework, and the country is not alone in its ownership of such a vast web of infrastructure.
The city of Leeds, UK, has the H21 project, a suite of gas industry projects that are designed to support the conversion of UK gas networks to carry hydrogen, and thus demonstrate the technical and economic feasibility of the switch. Led by Northern Gas Networks, in partnership with the global energy giant Equinor, H21 has already presented a conceptual design that would fully-convert the North of England to hydrogen by 2035.
Paving the way
Much of the infrastructure that will help hydrogen reach our homes and buildings is already beneath our feet. For hydrogen to become our main energy resource, industry and politicians must realise that it isn’t only a solution for transportation — and act on it.
There are many possibilities. Steelmakers can benefit from hydrogen-powered blast furnaces; residential properties can power ovens with hydrogen gas; and haulage trucks can run on decarbonised power. However, infrastructure needs to build on what it already has available. This involves investment in existing gas infrastructure, but also continued innovations to raise hydrogen’s availability.
Sandvik, for example, has developed the Sandvik Mobile Services Container that helps bring flexibility to those looking to invest in hydrogen technology. The service supplies coiled tubing solutions to customers on-site, using a digitally connected system to straighten and cut tubing to match the customer’s own specifications. Virtually any length can be cut, which reduces waste compared to delivering a standard tube size.
Currently, one of Sandvik’s containers has been deployed for Linde, which has built over 160 hydrogen-fuelling stations at commercial filling stations in more than 15 countries, and further stations are underway.
This is just one example of how infrastructure, and the ability to deliver parts, can scale-up hydrogen’s potential. Also, how Europe’s existing network of gas pipes, alongside current research and investment into the technology, can defy sceptics like Elon Musk. While many in the automotive industry, and beyond, believe that hydrogen fuel isn’t fool’s play, such innovations will be essential to bringing this sustainable fuel technology into the mainstream.
Mats W. Lundberg is sustainable business manager at Sandvik Materials Technology
It is always good to see new developments occurring, as in the “hydrogen economy”. A lot of money is being invested in a very speculative business; especially, given that at present hydrogen costs 3 times the price of natural gas and there is no apparently available technology to reduce this cost, which will of course be increased by CCS requirements.
Hydrogen is not a new panacea in the energy field, it was mooted in the 1960s too. My concern is that the UK gas storage is verging upon critically ill (we have only one third of the storage that we had a decade ago as the Rough Field closed) . At peak winter demand we have only 20 days storage and gas demand is increasing. Further, we are importing most of the gas and thus subject to a very volatile market, that would be helped by storage.
Still, “Nil desperandum sed carborundum” as our classically trained governing group would say.
Further to my comment on the UK gas situation, it is useful to put quantities to the topic. The UK at present imports approximately 520 TWh gas per year for domestic heat and power generation. The CCC (Committee for Climate Change) wants the UK to produce 300 TWh hydrogen from natural gas, by reforming, they recognised that electrolysis is not scaleable.
The conversion efficiency of reforming is very low and over double the gas would be needed even without CCS (which increases this ratio to nearer 3): thus we import another 600 – 900 TWh gas to replace 300 TWh methane. At present methane is trading at about £ 25/MWh, so the extra import cost is about £ 25 x 300 x 3 m = £14.5b /y. This is in addition to the massive capital cost of the process, all to be borne by energy users.
The only benefit of this massive spend on gas imports is a minuscule reduction in the world emissions of CO2, and the same benefits could be met far more efficiently by CCS applied to CCGT operations (these at least are proven high efficiency technology)
depends on the source of hydrogen. Electrolysis, fine. But from other sources, probably not. No natural process produces water. The planet is awash. We don’t need more
Hydrogen is losing out to batteries as the fuel of choice for electric vehicles. And quite rightly, given the superior efficiency of batteries. But hydrogen could play a role as a range extender – given the vehicle electrics are the same for both. Drivers will typically run on cheap electricity, but if they need to they can use more expensive hydrogen.
If the hydrogen is to be green – from renewable electricity (or nuclear power) – then it’s likely that it will be made in southern Europe or the sahara, where solar power is cheaper and far more available in the winter.
Hi Alex, not necessarily. As we recently reported the current hotbed of green hydrogen production innovation is in the North Sea https://www.theengineer.co.uk/green-hydrogen-production-innovations/
I did look at steam methane reforming and met with some the people behind the Leeds project. Low efficiency is the main problem. I was looking at the potential to use heat from molten salt reactors to drive the reforming process. Then you actually get more chemical energy out than you put in.
But of course, if we had molten salt reactors, then we wouldn’t be bothering about steam methane reforming.
The other problem with hydrogen as a replacement to natural gas is that is has less energy per unit of volume. All meters would need to be adjusted for a specific ratio of hydrogen:methane, which would then need to remain in-variate. If we were to use pure hydrogen, could the network ship enough? (Noting that insulation improvements could cut a lot of wastage).
I think that though there may be issues with production of hydrogen thee are many major issues to be resolved in terms of application; viz storage and transport.
These issues depend upon the scale and the state of the hydrogen.
If storage is in old oil field (fracked?) then presumably gaseous hydrogen. Vacuum insulated tubing is well used for transport of liquid gas (in the oil industry) I am not sure how applicable this might be to liquid hydrogen – though it might improve the transport of gaseous hydrogen by reducing the temperature and pressure (and increasing the density).
If the storage is to be domestic or vehicular then the low (volumetric) energy density might be an issue – either requiring the development of cheap and robust vacuum insulation or cheap and robust advanced (most likely thermoplastic – due to non-brittle nature) composites.
A strategy for hydrogen does need to ensure that an innovation chain is in place (rather than a tactical approach) – indeed other comments have identified issues for metered delivery. And, of course, there is the issue of hydrogen embrittlement of metallic pipes…
Why invest huge amounts of money in a new gas distribution system. Rather invest that money in research to directly convert CO2 and electricity into methane or methanol. Such conversion is equally CO2 neutral as hydrogen and requires no substantial investment in new infrastructure.
The methane can be injected in the existing natural gas grid and methanol is the better choice for heavy trucks: it has a far better energy density, can be stored at atmospheric pressure and is much safer.
“Hydrogen can be ‘Swiss Army Knife’ of sustainable fuel” … OK, an ineffective weapon from a nation that hasn’t fought a serious war since Napoleonic times seems a suitable metaphor