Hydrogen does not necessarily have to do without fossil fuels
Published: Wednesday, Jul 3rd 2024, 11:00
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According to researchers, hydrogen produced from sustainable electricity benefits the climate. For example, it can be used to produce ammonia and artificial fertilizer, but this requires large areas for solar and wind parks, as ETH Zurich writes.
In a study for Europe, researchers from ETH Zurich and the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) have calculated the conditions under which it would be worthwhile converting ammonia production to green or almost green hydrogen, as was reported in the ETH newsletter on Wednesday.
Two results stand out. In some European countries such as Norway, Spain, Hungary and Poland, it would already be economical to produce ammonia from green or almost green hydrogen. In these countries, sustainable electricity from solar or wind energy could be produced particularly cost-effectively. The reasons for this are the advantageous geographical conditions, state subsidies or generally low electricity costs.
Moreover, the electricity does not have to be completely fossil-free in order to achieve major positive effects for the climate. According to the study, it also makes sense to only use mainly renewable electricity. At times when there is no sun or wind, electricity could be drawn from the grid, some of which comes from fossil sources.
The calculations showed that greenhouse gas emissions from ammonia production could be reduced by 95 percent compared to today if hydrogen was used, the production of which releases no more than one kilogram of CO2 per kilogram of hydrogen.
The electricity required for this would have to be significantly greener than the current electricity mix in Germany, Poland and the Netherlands. These three countries are the largest ammonia producers in Europe. However, if hydrogen production were to be completely decarbonized rather than just 95 percent, the costs would be enormous.
For the authors, it would be conceivable to build new solar or wind farms directly next to existing ammonia production plants. However, this would require large areas, depending on the geographical conditions.
Hydrogen is currently produced from natural gas, which is associated with high greenhouse gas emissions and a dependency on natural gas-exporting countries. If green hydrogen were to be used as a clean alternative, this would help to achieve the climate targets and reduce dependency.
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