Hydrogen Is Back in the Spotlight

According to GreenCar Congress, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) released this week a Request for Information seeking input on priority hydrogen RD&D areas under its “H2@Scale” program to enable deep decarbonization of the industrial, transportation, and power generation sectors through wide-scale deployment of hydrogen.

Preliminary analysis performed by the national laboratories on the H2@Scale concept indicated that nearly a 50% reduction in GHG emissions is possible by 2050 via such large-scale hydrogen production and use. The concept sees hydrogen having the potential to be a centerpiece of a future energy system where aggressive market penetration of renewables (wind and solar) are coupled with renewable hydrogen production to meet society’s energy demands across industrial, transportation, and power generation sectors using clean, renewable resources and processes.

A key goal of the H2@Scale hydrogen concept is to enable hydrogen production at $1/kg through advancements in electrolyzer technologies, use of low-cost electricity from the grid during off-peak times, and high-volume manufacturing of electrolyzers enabled by the hydrogen use in a wide range of sectors.

Envisioned outcomes of H2@Scale hydrogen concept include:

• Increased penetration of intermittent renewable power generation;
• Low cost green hydrogen for use in liquid fuels production, fuel cells, turbines, and other applications;
• A decarbonized industrial sector through utilization of low-emission hydrogen production processes;
• Enable expanded use of nuclear energy, through small modular and/or hybridized reactors;
• A strong domestic industry and enhanced energy security through utilization of domestic energy sources and development of new technologies; and
• Increased energy system resiliency and flexibility.

This vision for hydrogen would look something like this:

Source: U.S. Department of Energy

While electric vehicles have gotten the lion’s share of media attention (even fervor) that has only reached new crescendos of late, hydrogen, GCC notes, is back in the spotlight. DOE explained a recent webinar there are several reasons for hydrogen’s resurgence:

• Renewable energy is getting cheaper, and penetration levels are increasing at an exponential pace;
• The costs of GHG emissions and air pollution (and their attendant health effects) are being acknowledged and are reaching a point where society is demanding change; and
• The commercial viability of hydrogen fuel cell vehicle technology has been demonstrated (and commercial vehicles are now being sold, albeit in small numbers).

Those small numbers of hydrogen vehicles are projected to quickly increase, according to Information Trends. The consultancy says over 20 million hydrogen fuel cell vehicles will be sold cumulatively by 2032, as shown in the figure below, generating revenues upwards of $1.2 trillion for the auto industry.

The report also notes that by 2020, sufficient fueling infrastructure will be in place in several regions of the world, giving an initial boost to the market for hydrogen fuel cell vehicles. That will enable the market to expand relatively quickly.

A whitepaper produced this week by Black & Veatch, one of the leading companies installing hydrogen fueling infrastructure noted that to capitalize on the momentum, the industry needs to advance further in three key areas:

• The per-station cost of construction prohibits rapid deployment. To reduce station component costs, supply chains should be expanded and enhanced to produce lower-cost parts without loss of performance; reduce hydrogen compression costs; standardize station designs, and streamline the permitting process.
• Financing is a bottleneck to hydrogen infrastructure and market maturity. To achieve widespread FCEV adoption, automakers could follow the leadership demonstrated by Toyota and Honda and invest in the infrastructure. Deployment investment in the battery-electric vehicle industry led by Tesla, Nissan and BMW are proven success stories of multi-stakeholders engagement.
• Think holistically when planning hydrogen infrastructure. Given the geographic and cultural differences in the U.S., ideal zero-emission vehicle technologies and infrastructure deployment could vary region to region. For this reason, corridor planning across regions will expand hydrogen infrastructure deployment with reduced investment risk, coordinated technology application, and full energy and environmental benefit. Holistic planning will also prepare the industry for advances in connected transportation, public transportation, transportation of goods and integrated systems, which enable true efficiencies across cities, regions and the U.S.