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IISc develops a green hydrogen technology

SoulSpokesman

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While this is encouraging it is not clear whether the process is scalable and what is the full cost of producing green hydrogen. Anything more than US$ 1.5 per kg H2 won't fly. Hopefully, the learned Maulanas of this forum- @niaz sb, @farok84, @CrazyZ, @Wood and @chinasun can shed some light on this.


An innovative technology to produce hydrogen from biomass has been developed by a team of researchers from the Indian Institute of Science (IISc). The team was led by S Dasappa, Professor at the Centre for Sustainable Technologies, and Chair of the Interdisciplinary Centre for Energy Research at IISc.

India uses nearly 50 lakh tonnes of hydrogen for various processes in different sectors, and the hydrogen market is expected to grow substantially in the coming years, says Dasappa. “But most of the hydrogen we currently use comes from fossil fuels through a process called steam methane reforming route.” Now, his team has found a way to extract green hydrogen from biomass, a renewable energy source.

The process consists of two steps. In the first step, biomass is converted into syngas – a hydrogen-rich fuel gas mixture – in a novel reactor using oxygen and steam. In the second step, pure hydrogen is generated from syngas using an indigenously developed low-pressure gas separation unit.

Both these technologies, developed in Dasappa’s lab, ensure that this process is a highly efficient method of generating green hydrogen – it produces 100 g of hydrogen from 1 kg of biomass even though only 60 g of hydrogen are present in 1 kg of biomass. This is because in this process, steam, which also contains hydrogen, participates in both homogeneous
and heterogeneous reactions (in homogeneous reactions, reactants are in a single phase whereas in heterogeneous reactions, the reactants are in two or more phases).

The production of green hydrogen using this process is environmentally friendly for another reason – it is carbon negative. The two carbon-based by-products are solid carbon, which serves as a carbon sink, and carbon dioxide, which can be used in other value-added products.

“This indigenous technology is a step towards achieving the goal of Atmanirbhar Bharat of the Honourable Prime Minister,” says Dasappa. The technology also dovetails nicely with the National Hydrogen Energy Roadmap, an initiative of the Government of India that aims to promote the use of hydrogen as a fuel and reduce dependence on fossil fuels, he adds.

The project was supported by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy and the Department of Science and Technology of the Government of India. The team also acknowledges the support of the Indian Oil Corporation Limited in scaling up the technology to produce 0.25 tonnes of hydrogen per day for use in hydrogen-powered fuel cell buses.

Dasappa believes that green hydrogen could be used in several other industries as well – in the steel industry to decarbonise steel, in agriculture to manufacture green fertilisers, and in many sectors currently using hydrogen produced from fossil fuels. “Moreover, the same platform can be used for methanol and ethanol production,” he adds.

Regards
 
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It is not carbon neutral. That is a bold faced lie. Carbon is produced in making your Oxygen as well as a lot of energy.

The process is likely, without seeing ACTUAL figures to be energy negative. ie Total energy needed to produce one gram of hydrogen requires more energy than you could obtain from that gram of hydrogen.

Hydrogen from syngas is a known technology several decades old. Its not even patented anymore.
 
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@Turingsage

It is not carbon neutral. That is a bold faced lie.

Well, I am not that tech savvy so I dont know. But if it brings down the overall emission per unit of hydrogen or energy produced it is fine.

Carbon is produced in making your Oxygen as well as a lot of energy.

But that energy required for making hot steam and air can be generated by biomass gassification or other RE sources, no?

Anyway my interest as a professional energy analyst is different. Is it cost competitive with coal or gas based hydrogen (or methanol for that matter). If true, it can substantially improve India;s BOP position and competitiveness plus improve farmer incomes.

Regards
 
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It is not carbon neutral. That is a bold faced lie. Carbon is produced in making your Oxygen as well as a lot of energy.

The process is likely, without seeing ACTUAL figures to be energy negative. ie Total energy needed to produce one gram of hydrogen requires more energy than you could obtain from that gram of hydrogen.

Hydrogen from syngas is a known technology several decades old. Its not even patented anymore.
See https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s13399-021-02128-y

If the energy for the process comes entirely from Biomass, it is net carbon neutral since biomass is a renewable carbon sink. i.e., carbon in biomass comes from atmospheric CO2.
 
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My only interest now is on being cost competitiveness and scalability.
Unfortunately, that information cannot be derived from the 10Kg per hour plant they have setup. Someone should build a Million Kg per year pilot to test out the economics.
 
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While this is encouraging it is not clear whether the process is scalable and what is the full cost of producing green hydrogen. Anything more than US$ 1.5 per kg H2 won't fly. Hopefully, the learned Maulanas of this forum- @niaz sb, @farok84, @CrazyZ, @Wood and @chinasun can shed some light on this.


An innovative technology to produce hydrogen from biomass has been developed by a team of researchers from the Indian Institute of Science (IISc). The team was led by S Dasappa, Professor at the Centre for Sustainable Technologies, and Chair of the Interdisciplinary Centre for Energy Research at IISc.

India uses nearly 50 lakh tonnes of hydrogen for various processes in different sectors, and the hydrogen market is expected to grow substantially in the coming years, says Dasappa. “But most of the hydrogen we currently use comes from fossil fuels through a process called steam methane reforming route.” Now, his team has found a way to extract green hydrogen from biomass, a renewable energy source.

The process consists of two steps. In the first step, biomass is converted into syngas – a hydrogen-rich fuel gas mixture – in a novel reactor using oxygen and steam. In the second step, pure hydrogen is generated from syngas using an indigenously developed low-pressure gas separation unit.

Both these technologies, developed in Dasappa’s lab, ensure that this process is a highly efficient method of generating green hydrogen – it produces 100 g of hydrogen from 1 kg of biomass even though only 60 g of hydrogen are present in 1 kg of biomass. This is because in this process, steam, which also contains hydrogen, participates in both homogeneous
and heterogeneous reactions (in homogeneous reactions, reactants are in a single phase whereas in heterogeneous reactions, the reactants are in two or more phases).

The production of green hydrogen using this process is environmentally friendly for another reason – it is carbon negative. The two carbon-based by-products are solid carbon, which serves as a carbon sink, and carbon dioxide, which can be used in other value-added products.

“This indigenous technology is a step towards achieving the goal of Atmanirbhar Bharat of the Honourable Prime Minister,” says Dasappa. The technology also dovetails nicely with the National Hydrogen Energy Roadmap, an initiative of the Government of India that aims to promote the use of hydrogen as a fuel and reduce dependence on fossil fuels, he adds.

The project was supported by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy and the Department of Science and Technology of the Government of India. The team also acknowledges the support of the Indian Oil Corporation Limited in scaling up the technology to produce 0.25 tonnes of hydrogen per day for use in hydrogen-powered fuel cell buses.

Dasappa believes that green hydrogen could be used in several other industries as well – in the steel industry to decarbonise steel, in agriculture to manufacture green fertilisers, and in many sectors currently using hydrogen produced from fossil fuels. “Moreover, the same platform can be used for methanol and ethanol production,” he adds.

Regards

Hi,

Thanks for the tag.

I don't really have much knowledge on the subject, but I don't see hydrogen becoming a threat to Oil/ Gas industry for few decades (atleast I hope for that, or I will be out of work). It will take alot of time and capital to convert power generation to hydrogen on industrial or countrywide scale, transportation fuel, small scale commercial and domestic usage will even take longer, so investing in an infant industry without clear indication on returns, isn't likely going to be attractive prospect to private conglomerates. Likely R&D investments are going to come in, at governmental level, from fuel starved large consumers like China/ India, but they too have to account for the cost of conversion, that makes me believe O/G isn't going anywhere for few decades.
 
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But if it brings down the overall emission per unit of hydrogen or energy produced it is fine.
There are NO FIGURES. All this is is assertions from a interested group. We need ACTUAL DATA not mere assertions. That is not science , not even high school science.
Anyway my interest as a professional energy analyst is different. Is it cost competitive with coal or gas based hydrogen (or methanol for that matter).
You are asking the question. Surely that is the most vital part of such a study by an IISc to be backed up with scientific data, and there is none. Mere assertions from a PROVEN TECHNOLOGY that is decades old without proper data and analysis is NOT SCIENCE.
Just google hydrogen from syngas and you will have many scientific papers WITH REAL DATA.
For your "carbon neutral" scenario can you tell me How much energy you consume by burning syngas to produce a lire of Oxygen ??????????????????????????
If at the end of the day the amount of energy needed for the whole process OUTWEIGHS the energy obtained from the said hydrogen by multiples as I suspect then the whole exercise is utterly doomed with no real benefits
 
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Hydrogen rainbow

Screenshot_20221106-013403.jpg
 
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