Over the decades, renewable forms of energy have been encouraged and new technologies have been developed. The world, however, is still facing many challenges in making the transition from fossil fuel to carbon-neutral energy – especially with the current energy crisis demanding more sustainable forms of energy.
It is now apparent that energy is our global economy’s deepest obstacle. We simply must continue innovating technology that will sustain both our planet and society. Green hydrogen, has been touted as a potential substitute to fossil fuels, mainly in hard to abate sectors.
The growing popularity behind this innovative solution stems behind how it can facilitate a transition away from hydrocarbons. Made with renewable energy, it will be an essential contributor to effecting this necessary change. Determining how to achieve cost-effective production, however, presents a formidable challenge.
The desire to move toward green hydrogen is real, but making the transition has three critical requirements :
- Improving knowledge, design, and engineering results
Finding the forward path towards efficient green hydrogen production requires new technologies and new thinking. Moreover, many individuals still lack the necessary training and skills needed to support the hydrogen economy. Integrated engineering using a digital twin and process modelling are currently key technology solutions for green hydrogen production & design. However, as production continues to evolve, tech of this nature should continue to be evaluated and improved.
Currently, producing and using hydrogen for power is inefficient compared to directly using renewable electricity. According to the International Energy Agency, less than 0.1% of hydrogen today is produced through water electrolysis, but that could soon change. An estimated $500 billion will be spent on development of hydrogen projects over the next decade, approximately 70% of which will target green hydrogen production. This investment is expected to push low-carbon hydrogen production capacity beyond 10 million metric tons annually by 2030.
- Ensuring safety and efficiency, improving operations
While hydrogen is a not a toxic gas, it is still a highly flammable and relatively complex to de-risk. Moreover, the severity and frequency of damage related to hydrogen, for example, is dependent on the extent to which the gas has been blended with other materials. In short, hydrogen should be consistently monitored through a combined safety, power, and process control system. On top of the safety regulations needed during production, the massive consumption of power for green hydrogen production also makes power efficiency critically important.
Tools like predictive analytics and advanced process control can help producers achieve maximum plant uptime and efficiency. Popular technology tools like artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) also help to improve analytics for optimised asset performance.
A combined power and process strategy from design into engineering and operate and maintain stages improves the efficiency of green hydrogen production, resulting in savings in complete lifecycle of the asset. Digital twin, combined power and process control system, integrated safety and predictive analytics should be considered by green hydrogen developers as must have solutions.
- Developing and implementing requirements for green certification
It is very likely that in some cases producing renewable energy close to the green hydrogen production facility may not be possible. Also, it is likely that there may be some independent renewable energy producers wanting to sell their produced energy to green hydrogen producers.
In such cases the power will be transmitted to the green hydrogen production facility through the grid. When grid power is used for green hydrogen production, it becomes important for the producer to know, as well as make available to the hydrogen users, that the produced hydrogen is actually generated from green electrons. Such certification will be necessary for any rebate hydrogen users may get from authorities. Blockchain is going to be the solution for such certifications and this will have to be adopted by power utility companies, hydrogen producers and the users.
New technologies, like green hydrogen, will pave the way as the world moves away from fossil fuels and towards renewable energy sources. Leveraging the experience we have gathered in the energy and chemicals industry can help us improve project design and operations, ultimately providing an opportunity to refine our future as an economy.
Author: By Rajesh D. Sharma, Global Director Marketing Oil & Gas Digital Solutions at Schneider Electric
