Hydrogen As A Fuel: Importance & Challenges

In a push for India’s energy security, Prime Minister announced a National Hydrogen Mission for the country on 15^th August, 2021. The aim is to develop India into a global hub for manufacturing of hydrogen and fuel cells technologies across the value chain.

Hydrogen and Hydrogen-based Fuels

• Hydrogen can be used in its pure form as an energy carrier or as an industrial raw material.
• It can also be combined with other inputs to produce what are referred to as hydrogen-based fuels and feedstock. Hydrogen-based fuels include such derivative products as synthetic methane, synthetic liquid fuels and methanol, all of which require carbon alongside hydrogen. They also include ammonia, which can be used as a chemical feedstock or potentially as a fuel, and which is made by combining hydrogen with nitrogen.

Categorization of Hydrogen Production

• Colours have been used to refer to different sources of hydrogen production as the environmental impacts of the production routes can vary considerably depending on energy source, region and type of CCUS (carbon capture, utilization and storage) method applied. The different types of hydrogen are as follows:
  1. “Black”, “grey” or “brown” refer to the production of hydrogen from coal, natural gas and lignite respectively.
  2. “Blue” is commonly used for the production of hydrogen from fossil fuels with CO2 emissions reduced by the use of CCUS (carbon capture, utilization and storage).
  3. “Green” is a term applied to production of hydrogen through the process of electrolysis using renewable electricity.

India’s Story of Hydrogen

• India’s endeavor in hydrogen technologies dates back to 1976, when the Department of Science and Technology sponsored hydrogen projects in universities and technical institutes.
• At present, India produces around 6.7 Mt of hydrogen annually. A report published by The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) anticipates the demand to reach 23 Mt in 2050.
• The current price of hydrogen in the country ranges from INR 340 to 400 per kg. (USD 4.5 to 5.3 per kg). The cost parity is expected to be achieved when green hydrogen is produced at INR 150 per kg (USD 2 per kg).
• Refineries, fertilizer, and the steel industry are major consumers of hydrogen in the country. Apart from industries, active research, development, and demonstration is being carried out in the area of electricity production, hydrogen storage, and mobility (fuel cell powered cars, rail, truck, bus, ships, etc.).

Importance

Using hydrogen as a fuel has following advantages:

• Clean Energy Fuel: Hydrogen can be used without direct emissions of air pollutants or greenhouse gases. It can be made from a diverse range of low-carbon energy sources. Its potential supply includes production from renewable electricity, biomass and nuclear.
• More Energy per Unit of Mass: Hydrogen contains more energy per unit of mass than natural gas or gasoline, making it attractive as a transport fuel.Also, hydrogen can be compressed, liquefied, or transformed into hydrogen-based fuels that have a higher energy density.
• Solution to Duck Curve Phenomenon: Green hydrogen, in conjunction with grid-scale battery storage, can act as a solution to duck curve phenomenon, (renewable electricity production and peak demand are displaced by hours on a daily load curve). Such a solution will reduce renewable energy curtailment, allow maximum utilization of renewable energy sources, entrust and protect RE investments against loss of revenue due to curtailment, provide power system operation flexibility, and allow additional capacity for more renewable plants in the electric grid.
• Availability of Sufficient Water in India: Production of green hydrogen requires water and green electricity as input to the electrolyzer. Each kg of hydrogen uses around 8.92 liters of demineralized water. Green hydrogen as an alternative source of energy can become a reality in India if the large availability of renewable and water resources are used optimally.
• Potential to Reduce Cost of Green Hydrogen in India: India has the potential to bring down the cost of green hydrogen by using low-cost renewable generating plants and cost-curtailment experience gained through solar and wind reverse auctions.According to International Renewable Energy Agency’s report, reducing the cost of renewable-based electricity by half can halve the cost of green hydrogen if other cost components (capital cost, annual load factor of electrolyzer) remain unchanged.
• Help to Tap Market Potential of India: Huge market potential, owing to the young demography and thriving economy, will be a long-term benefit for the government while pushing the application of hydrogen-based technologies.
• Reduce Import Bill of India: India is spending ₹12 trillion annually to meet the energy needs. Green hydrogen - which is produced by splitting water into hydrogen and oxygen using an electrolyzer powered by electricity from renewable energy sources such as wind and solar - can be a game changer for India, which imports 85% of its oil and 53% of gas demand.
• Make India Self- Reliant: For India to progress and become self-reliant, it is important to become energy independent. Use of green hydrogen can make India energy independent in the times to come.
• Boost Indian Economy: Deployment of green hydrogen at the lowest cost will help in cost leadership position not only to meet green hydrogen and ammonia demands internally, but also become a major exporter of green hydrogen and green ammonia worldwide. This initiative on green hydrogen can help us to build an ecosystem of a 2-3 trillion dollar industry in the next 20-25 years.

Challenges

• The significant barriers in using hydrogen as a fuel are:
• High technology cost
• Risk of undesirable sunk cost
• Absence of dedicated government policy
• Lack of public awareness
• Hydrogen is the lightest element and so has a low energy density per unit of volume. This means that larger volumes of hydrogen must be moved to meet identical energy demands as compared with other fuels.
• Any conversion and subsequent re-conversion of hydrogen into hydrogen-based fuels uses some energy.
• The present storage and transportation technologies of hydrogen are expected to be mature and cost-effective only by 2030.