Hydrogen

Scientist in Canada have proposed to combine rooftop PV power generation with an alkaline electrolyzer and a fuel cell to generate hydrogen in buildings. The new system is intended at enabling seasonal energy storage and reduce a home’s levelized cost of energy.

Researchers in Spain has found that combining PV power generation with fuel cells and battery storage may help homes considerably reduce their levelized cost of energy. Their simulation reportedly demonstrated homes may also become completely self-sufficient.

The European Hydrogen Bank’s pilot auction is delivering €720 million ($768.3 million) to seven renewable hydrogen projects in Finland, Norway, Portugal and Spain. Together, they plan to produce 1.58 million tons of renewable hydrogen over a period of 10 years.

Norwegian Ship Design Co. has agreed to help build what it claims will be the two largest hydrogen ships in the world, while Norwegian Hydrogen has announced plans to team up with Australia’s Provaris Energy on hydrogen export opportunities.

Alberto Boretti was a senior research professor at Prince Mohammad Bin Fahd University in 2021 when he first started discussing the idea of a hydrogen city in Al Khobar, Saudi Arabia. The New Zealand-based independent tells pv magazine that it is now commercially feasible, as the city’s 200 MW of energy demand would necessitate 1 GW to 1.3 GW of solar and wind capacity, 509 MW to 997 MW of electrolysis capacity, and 145,000 MWh of hydrogen storage capacity.

Aurora Energy Research says it has recorded a sharp increase in green hydrogen projects, with 90% of them in early phases of development, while E.ON says that Germany’s hydrogen ramp-up is stuck due to an investment backlog.

The Korea Institute of Energy Research has developed a solid oxide electrolysis cell stack that uses a special kind of separator plate to ensure proper flow of hydrogen and oxigen after water splitting. Samsung Electro-Mechanics and Bumhan Industries are now cooperating with the research center to improve relevant manufacturing process.

Denmark will procure at least 6 GW of offshore wind power capacity to potentially produce hydrogen, while Orlen says it will use a European Commission grant to build 16 hydrogen refueling stations in Poland.

The use of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) to create nanoscale crystal structures to attract hydrogen molecules could drastically improve the energy efficiency of storing and transporting the energy carrier.

Linde says its White Martins unit will build a second electrolyzer to produce green hydrogen in Brazil, while Sunfire has launched a front-end engineering and design study (FEED) for a new 500 MW hydrogen project.