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The objectives for this project were:

To discharge the UK Participating Agency role in the first year of Task 18 of the IEA's Implementing Agreement on Hydrogen

To review and identify candidate UK hydrogen demonstration projects

To reach agreement in relation to one or more of these projects, in relation to their participation within the Task 18 project analysis framework

The conclusions from this project were:

The work has identified a range of hydrogen related demonstration activities in the UK, either already operational, under construction or planned

Compressed gaseous hydrogen fuelled fuel cell installations represent the majority of installations to date

The HARI project, at West Beacon Farm, Leics., represented the sole UK example of an integrated renewable energy/hydrogen system implemented to date

Anticipated developments , which are projected to be commissioned within the next six months, include the CUTE re-fuelling station in Essex and the PURE project, in Unst, Shetland

This summary provides information on:

Objectives

Summary

Contractor

Cost

Duration

Background

The Work Programme

Conclusions

Potential for Future Development

Realising a sustainable hydrogen economy requires a breakthrough in the production of hydrogen. Photoelectrochemical conversion of solar energy to energy in hydrogen at viable efficiency isa long term goal needed to usher in the Hydrogen economy worldwide. The twin cell technology based Tandem Cell^TM tackles a number of challenges faced by single photoelectrochemical cell based water splitting and offers a novel way of utilising complimentary parts of the solar spectrum in two cells. The overall process results in a complete system driven by solar energy that splits water into hydrogen and oxygen.

This program included 12 technical tasks:

1. Studies on spray nozzle parameters
2. Studies on spray solution parameters
3. Investigation of the mechanised doctor blading technique
4. Investigation of spray pyrolysis techniques
5. Performance of scale-0up electrodes in Tandem Cell^TM
6. Alternative photocatalytic materials
7. Alternative electrolytes
8. A desk study on substrate materials
9. A lab study on substrate materials
10. Alternative design configuration
11. Quality control procedures
12. Fabrication of Tandem Cells

The main conclusions resulting from this DTI-assisted project were:

Semiconductor metal oxide spray deposition parameters such as nozzle height and liquid flow rate were optimised in order to improve the photocurrent performance.

A number of dopants that improve the performance of photocurrent density over 50% over undoped samples were discovered by a systematic study.

A semi-automated method was developed for the production of metal oxide coated electrodes that is suitable for producing larger scale plates, up to 25 x 25 cm². The method would be suitable for further scaling to produce 5m² Tandem Cells/day.

A new annealing regime capable of producing crack-free larger scale semiconductor electrodes was introduced.

Some new photocatalytic semiconductor materials were highlighted with good potential.

An extensive study on alternative electrolytes was conducted and some new electrolyte systems were discovered.

A desk and lab study on alternative substrates was conducted.

Alternative Tandem Cell design configurations were studied.

Quality control procedures were developed for each step of the Tandem Cell production process.

An array of 12 Tandem Cells was constructed. This was set up as a demonstration unit in a UK site and produced gas.

This report is divided into the following sections:

1. Introduction
2. Experimental Work
3. Results
4. Discussion
5. Conclusions
6. Recommendations
7. Acknowledgements
8. Figures
9. Appendix

The purpose and focus of the Hydrogen Turbines project is to improve the ETI's understanding of the economics of flexible power generation systems comprising hydrogen production (with CCS), intermediate hydrogen storage (e.g. in salt caverns) and flexible turbines, and to provide data on the potential economics and technical requirements of such technology to refine overall energy system modelling inputs. The final deliverable (D2) comprises eight separate components. This document is D2 WP1 Report - providing results of a techno-economic assessment of options for hydrogen power production from coal, coal/biomass and gas. It covers:

• Options for hydrogen production
• Techno-economic definition of the selected hydrogen production options
• Characterisation of basic design requirements for a cost effective hydrogen store
• Requirements / options for hydrogen turbines
• Economics of hydrogen pipelines
• Effects of hydrogen purity

The purpose and focus of the Hydrogen Turbines project is to improve the ETI’s understanding of the economics of flexible power generation systems comprising hydrogen production (with CCS), intermediate hydrogen storage (e.g. in salt caverns) and flexible turbines, and to provide data on the potential economics and technical requirements of such technology to refine overall energy system modelling inputs. The final deliverable (D2) comprises eight separate components. This document is D2 WP3 Report – providing a series of supporting studies:

• Identification of potential salt cavern locationswithin UK and first 25 miles of UK Continental Shelf;
• Salt cavern cost structure;
• HSE challenges of cavern construction and operation;
• Managing loss of containment;
• Licensing and build timeline;
• Alternative cavern use; and
• Landscapingstudy of alternatives to salt caverns.

The purpose and focus of the Hydrogen Turbines project is to improve the ETI’s understanding of the economics of flexible power generation systems comprising hydrogen production (with CCS), intermediate hydrogen storage (e.g. in salt caverns) and flexible turbines, and to provide data on the potential economics and technical requirements of such technology to refine overall energy system modelling inputs. The final deliverable (D2) comprises eight separate components. This document is D2 – Summary Report, providing an Overview of the project.

The ETI’s energy system modelling shows that flexible power generation systems comprising hydrogen generation with CCS, intermediate storage (particularly using salt caverns) and flexible turbines are attractive options for the UK. In the model described here, hydrogen is supplied from coal and biomass fired gasifiers and steam methane reformers, with CO₂ captured for storage. This permits the use at high load of capital intensive and relatively inflexible conversion and CCS equipment, filling hydrogen storage when power is not needed, and releasing hydrogen at short notice through turbines when power is at a premium

The ETI’s energy system modelling shows that flexible power generation systems comprising hydrogen generation with CCS, intermediate storage (particularly using salt caverns) and flexible turbines are attractive options for the UK. In the model described here, hydrogen is supplied from coal and biomass fired gasifiers and steam methane reformers, with CO₂ captured for storage. This permits the use at high load of capital intensive and relatively inflexible conversion and CCS equipment, filling hydrogen storage when power is not needed, and releasing hydrogen at short notice through turbines when power is at a premium.

This executive summary covers the objectives and main findings of the five work packages, and suggests the next steps.

Infographic showing how hydrogen could help in the 10 year transition to low carbon.

This document is a summary for the project titled 'The production of hydrogen from methane using nonthermal plasma: a feasibility study'.

There is a growing necessity to find alternative ways to produce energy with lower emissions of pollutants and higher efficiencies compared to combustion. One such option is the use of Polymer Electrolyte Membrane (PEM) fuel cell system, PEM fuel cells convert hydrogen gas into useful electric power with an efficiency that is not limited by thermodynamics and the only by product is water. However due to current infrastructure, storage technology and safety concerns, hydrogen gas cannot be stored on-board in adequate amounts for mobile applications. One way of getting round this problem is producing the hydrogen on board and on demand, this can be done by using hydrocarbons. Hydrocarbons are any chemical compound made up of hydrogen and carbon and they can also easily be used to produce other clean fuels such as methanol.

The objective of this project was to investigate the feasibility of non-thermal, atmospheric pressure plasma processing being used for the conversion of hydrocarbons such as methane into cleaner fuels, including hydrogen and methanol, in an energy efficient and sustainable way. Plasma can be described as an electrically charged gas mixture which responds strongly to electromagnetic fields. Current techniques of reforming waste greenhouse gasses are much less energy efficient than this proposed solution. One of these is steam reforming which is conducted at high temperatures and has problems with corrosion and catalyst poisoning.

This project particularly focused on the simultaneous combination of a plasma discharge with a catalyst, catalysts are substances that cause or accelerate chemical reactions without being affected themselves. The aim of focusing on the combination of these substances was to improve the overall conversion of the hydrocarbon and to optimise the efficiency of the production of hydrogen or methanol.

In this project, a system has been developed for detecting the end products of the plasma processing using a process called gas chromatography. This process breaks the final substance down into its component parts so the efficiency of the conversion can be measured. It was found that by combining the plasma discharge with a catalyst, the degree of conversion of the methane can be increased and the efficiency for the production of certain products (hydrogen, methanol) improved.