Hydrogen: The Multifunction Tool of Net-Zero Energy Systems
This is the fourth blog in a series examining net-zero energy systems, drawing upon the results of our Meta-Analysis of U.S. Economy-Wide Decarbonization Studies (Meta NZ).
Hydrogen has the intrinsic qualities of a fuel. It’s storable and transportable. It can generate high-temperature heat or serve as a chemical feedstock.
But hydrogen is no ordinary fuel. It is distinct in that it does not contain carbon. This means that no carbon dioxide is emitted when hydrogen is used. It also means that hydrogen can be produced in a variety of ways, as it doesn’t require a carbon feedstock for its production.
These attributes make hydrogen highly versatile, earning it the title as the “Swiss Army Knife” of energy transitions. In this blog, I’ll dive into how hydrogen is leveraged in net-zero energy systems, and why.
Hydrogen use in net-zero energy systems
Hydrogen is used in industry because it can generate high-temperature heat and serve as a chemical feedstock. That makes hydrogen capable of addressing industrial processes that are difficult-to-decarbonize through electrification or other means.
Hydrogen is used in transportation because it is storable and transportable. Relatively large quantities of energy can be stored in on-board fuel tanks, allowing hydrogen-fueled vehicles to travel long distances at high power output — especially helpful for heavy-duty and off-road transport sectors.
Hydrogen is blended into the pipeline gas infrastructure and/or directly used in buildings because energy systems need multi-day and annual energy storage to balance variations in both energy supply and energy demand (especially winter season heating). As a fuel, hydrogen can store energy year-round. When blended, hydrogen can leverage the vast energy storage capacity of existing gas infrastructure.
Hydrogen is used as a feedstock for fuels and chemicals production because it is an essential ingredient for key chemicals such as ammonia, and because in some situations, it can be more cost-effective to convert hydrogen to synthetic hydrocarbon fuels that can leverage existing infrastructure and equipment, rather than using it directly.
Hydrogen production in net-zero energy systems
Hydrogen is produced from natural gas. By applying carbon capture and sequestration, hydrogen can be cost-effectively produced from natural gas in ways that have low overall lifecycle emissions.
Hydrogen is produced from electricity via electrolysis, especially electricity generated from wind and solar, which are amongst the lowest-cost sources of low-carbon energy. Storage is needed to leverage the full output of these variable renewable energy sources. While batteries and other technologies achieve hourly and intraday storage, hydrogen provides storage over longer time scales.
Hydrogen is produced from biomass. Approaches like biomass gasification with integrated carbon capture provide a cost-effective means to drive multiple decarbonization outcomes. In addition to producing low-carbon hydrogen, the carbon captured from such processes can be utilized to produce other low-carbon fuels and chemicals. Or the carbon captured from this process can be sequestered, enabling carbon dioxide removal (CDR) whereby carbon is removed from the atmosphere (during the biomass growth cycle) and durably stored.
Innovation. Integration. Infrastructure.
As hydrogen has gained attention as a versatile tool for decarbonization, innovation has flourished. For example, there are several emerging innovations in hydrogen production technologies including autothermal reforming, partial oxidation, pyrolysis, sorbent-enhanced reforming, and geologic production. To unleash hydrogen’s potential, integration is required across technologies, equipment, infrastructure, producers, consumers, and market participants. At-scale integration will require at-scale infrastructure. Proving out and building up new infrastructure systems, such as underground hydrogen storage, as well as leveraging existing infrastructure systems, will help to advance hydrogen’s role in a net-zero economy.
