The Role of Hydrogen in the Renewable Energy Mix

1. The Role of Hydrogen in the Renewable Energy Mix Dr. Michael Mann Chemical Engineering University of North Dakota

3. Presentation Outline The Hydrogen Economy The 2005 Energy Policy Act Sources of Hydrogen A Case Study: Basin Electric Summary

4. Reasons to Change from Fossil Fuel Political obligation - reduce CO2 emissions Worldwide energy dependence Oil is a scarce commodity Needs of developing economies

5. What is the Hydrogen Economy

6. Why Hydrogen? High mass energy density 2.4x methane; 2.8x gasoline, 4x coal Absence of emissions: CO2, NOx, SO2, PM But clean as source of production Eliminate emission from disperse sources - transportation Allow integration of renewable, intermittent energy sources Uninterrupted electricity Low system efficiency Volumetrically challenged

7. Is hydrogen poised to have a major impact on the energy industry?

8. Presentation Outline The Hydrogen Economy The 2005 Energy Policy Act Sources of Hydrogen A Case Study: Basin Electric Summary

9. Energy Policy Act and Hydrogen No preamble to identify goals Does not coordinate any “national energy policy or strategy” Budget represents lobby interests – not amount necessary to overcome barriers Approach ensures no interest group was left out, but prevents headway in any fledging industry H2 Funding does not match goals

10. Goals of Title VIII Recognized that: H2 source of heat and electricity Storage - transportation or electricity H2 can replace petroleum – “decreasing the US dependency of imported oil” Acts as storage medium for electricity created by intermittent resources “creating a sustainable energy economy” Wind, biomass, solar – replace coal and oil

11. Title VIII Development, Demonstration and Commercialization 2,500,000 vehicles by 2020 – 1% of US Will require major infrastructure changes Not large enough to cause conversion to fuel cell vehicles Makes sense for fleet centers Will not meet goal of “acceptance by consumers” Target prevents economy of scale

12. Fuel Diversity vs Fuel Replacement “to build a mature hydrogen economy that creates fuel diversity in the massive transportation sector” “mature” suggests formidable technical hurdles will be overcome “diversity” leaves room for H2, ethanol, etc Can US meets both goals Distribution and delivery infrastructure Engine design

13. Is Money in Title VIII Adequate Goal of putting money into “public investments in industry, higher education, national labs, and research institutions to expand innovation” Focus on primary developmental needs Isolating, storage distribution, transporting H2 Fuel cell technologies Demonstration projects Development of safety codes and standards Authorized $4.046 billion through 2010 2x other renewables, $1.775 b less than ethanol

14. How should we evaluate new energy technologies? Must give net energy (energy ratio >1) throughout life cycle Sustainable in all environmental concerns All climate changes considered Must be politically feasible Don’t under estimate concerns with developing technologies

15. Sources of H2

16. Sources of H2 CH4 reforming $3/MMBtu CH4 -> $6/MMBtu H2 $12/MMBtu CH4 -> $20/MMBtu H2 Releases CO2 Does not address energy security Electrolysis 3kW electricity per 1 kW H2 produced $20/MMBtu H2 Thermochemical “cracking” Solar or nuclear energy sources Experimental

17. Wind as Source of Hydrogen Energy ratio of wind is around 30 After electrolysis and delivery ~15 End use conversion drops ratio to 8 to 12 US oil to gasoline – ratio of 6 to 10 Corn to ethanol – ratio of 1.3 to 1.8 Other concerns Delivered energy reduced in half by end use Substantial money investments Hydrogen storage

18. What technologies can produce H2 to replace transportation needs?

19. Storage and Distribution Distribution methods Pipeline Liquid hydrogen Solid metal hydride Carrier fuels Carbon nanotubes Fueling station infrastructure $450,000 per H2 pump 10,000 stations minimum to service US Mature H2 economy - $200 billion

21. Presentation Outline The Hydrogen Economy The 2005 Energy Policy Act Sources of Hydrogen A Case Study: Basin Electric Summary

22. An Electric Utility Perspective A common obstacle to the development of wind energy in many parts of the United States is the difficulty in adding wind-generated electricity onto transmission lines that are already constrained Transmission constraint limitations on new wind generation can be overcome by dynamically scheduling grid-connected wind energy to power a load (electrolyzer or multiple electrolyzers) within a regional area Plus – deals with intermittency of renewable resources

23. Case Study: Basin Electric

25. Project Background Electrolyzer: Hydrogenics HySTAT A-30, Output 30 Nm3/hr (2.7 kg/hr) at full capacity Compression/storage: 80 kg of storage in three pairs of cascading cylinders, (six total) at 6000 psi Dispenser: 5000 psi of dispensing pressure Hydrogen use: Three Chevy ½-ton internal combustion pickups capable of running on H2,E-85, and gasoline Hydrogen use: A genset converted to run on H2

26. Project Background

27. Tri-fuel (gasoline–E-85–hydrogen) engine conversion provided by AFVTech on three Chevrolet trucks. Internal combustion generator converted to operate on H2 (still negotiating this item). H2 End Use Demonstration

28. Dynamic Scheduling There are four control modes, each representing a different approach for dynamic scheduling All modes are constrained by the technological limitation of the electrolyzer—the need to maintain a minimum of 7.5 Nm3 H2 production for fast response time The minimum operating level requirement and parasitic power (heating, lights, etc.) will be met by grid energy for this research project

29. Dynamic Scheduling: Mode 1 Most directly addresses the transmission problem “x” amount of added wind energy is cancelled by “x” amount of electrolyzer capacity Least efficient because of underutilization of electrolyzer capacity Simulated by scaling: 100% wind farm output corresponds to 100% electrolyzer power capacity –directly proportioned down to minimum operating level of electrolyzer

30. Dynamic Scheduling: Mode 2 Similar to Mode 1, but with addition of low-cost, off-peak, non-wind electricity to supplement wind energy for full electrolyzer production from 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. daily and all day on weekends Non-wind electricity is only utilized when wind energy is not sufficient to run electrolyzer at full load Still an inefficient use of electrolyzer due to underutilization

31. Dynamic Scheduling: Mode 3 Assumes that the added MWs of wind energy are greater than the added MWs of electrolyzer-based load The wind-generated electricity above the full power needed to run electrolyzer is fed to the grid Improved utilization of the electrolyzer over Modes 1 and 2 makes it more efficient Requires the grid to utilize energy excess

32. Dynamic Scheduling: Mode 4 Similar to Mode 3, but with the addition of low-cost off-peak non-wind electricity to supplement wind energy for full electrolyzer production from 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. daily and all day on weekends Non-wind electricity is only utilized when wind energy is not sufficient to run electrolyzer at full load during Most efficient of the modes—approximately 90% utilization of electrolyzer Requires the grid to utilize energy excess

33. Presentation Outline The Hydrogen Economy The 2005 Energy Policy Act Sources of Hydrogen A Case Study: Basin Electric Summary

34. Future Expectations Conditions for societal based H2 economy Strong international CO2 agreements Reduced cost of H2 production, distribution, storage, and utilization IEA most favorable prediction for H2 / 2050 30% of cars powered by H2 feed 200 – 300 GW installed FC to cogenerate heat and electricity

35. What about Hydrogen Hydrogen will be a part of the solution, but not the single silver bullet Hydrogen is just an energy carrier, we still need a primary energy source(s) Hydrogen can be used to firm renewable energy resources. Current conditions need to change to improve economic viability

36. References & Acknowledgements Dr. Rhonda Peters – Clipper Energy Dr. Kevin Harrison – NREL E. Lockey, “A critical review of the Energy Policy Act of 2005’s treatment of hydrogen”, International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, 32 (2007) 1673-1679. P. Moriatry and D. Honnery, “Intermittent renewable energy: the only future source of hydrogen?” International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, 32 (2007) 1616-1624. G. Marban and T. Valdes-Solis, “Towards a hydrogen economy?” International Journal of Hydrogen Energy, 32 (2007) 1625-1637.