Hydrogen energy breakthrough – starting from electrolysis of water to produce hydrogen
My favorite three hydrogen energy sources – hydrogen breakthrough – starting from electrolysis of water to produce hydrogen
1. Introduction to hydrogen production by electrolysis of water
Due to almost zero emissions during the hydrogen production process, electrolysis of water for hydrogen production is considered the best way to produce hydrogen in the future. The core equipment for hydrogen production through electrolysis of water is undoubtedly the electrolysis cell, and the currently mainstream mature ones are alkaline electrolysis cell and PEM electrolysis cell (core component proton exchange membrane).
The use of green electricity for hydrogen production is called green hydrogen, while the use of fossil fuels for hydrogen production is called grey hydrogen. If grey hydrogen is generated while carbon capture is used to capture greenhouse gases, it is called blue hydrogen. According to coal based hydrogen production, the cost of carbon capture is about 16 yuan/kg. Currently, in areas with abundant green electricity resources in Xinjiang and Inner Mongolia, the lowest cost of green hydrogen can reach 16kg, which is equivalent to blue hydrogen.
2. There are countless policies for the hydrogen energy industry
Electrolysis of water for hydrogen production as energy storage can solve the long-term problem of photovoltaic waste rate, while wind solar+hydrogen energy storage can solve the problems of peak shaving and consumption. Compared to electrochemical energy storage, hydrogen energy storage has a larger storage capacity, longer duration, and is not limited by raw materials such as lithium. It can also be used as an industrial alternative to fossil fuels for hydrogen production.
Due to the aforementioned advantages of hydrogen energy storage, various regions are actively deploying integrated wind solar hydrogen projects to replace blue hydrogen and gray hydrogen. Due to the numerous hydrogen energy policies, only a few are listed.
The “Development Plan for Hydrogen Energy Industry in Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region” points out that by 2025, the hydrogen production capacity from renewable energy will reach over 80000 tons, and efforts will be made to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 1-2 million tons. More than 10 hydrogen refueling stations have been built, and the proportion of renewable hydrogen replacing coal for hydrogen production has significantly increased. The promotion and application of natural gas mixed with hydrogen have achieved significant results, and the number of hydrogen fuel cell heavy-duty trucks is over 500.
The 14th Five Year Plan for the Development of New and Renewable Energy in Jilin Province points out that the production capacity of hydrogen from renewable energy will reach 60000 to 80000 tons per year, pilot projects for “Green Jilin Chemical Industry” will be constructed, and the production capacity of green synthetic ammonia, green methanol, and green refining will be renovated to reach 250000 to 350000 tons per year.
3. Potential space for green hydrogen
In July 2020, the European Union released its hydrogen energy strategic plan, focusing on the development and utilization of renewable energy sources such as wind power and photovoltaics to produce renewable hydrogen. By 2024, support the installation of over 6GW renewable hydrogen electrolysis cells with a hydrogen production capacity of 1 million tons. By 2030, construct 40GW renewable hydrogen electrolysis cells with a hydrogen production capacity of 10 million tons.
At present, China’s industrial hydrogen consumption is about 30 million tons per year. Calculated at 12 yuan per kilogram, it is about 360 billion yuan. According to the China Hydrogen Alliance, the expected demand for hydrogen in the next 25 years is 60 million tons.
According to Saudi Arabia’s 2030 Vision, 4 million tons of hydrogen energy will be exported within 30 years.
According to Guotai data, the price of a single 1000 standard cubic meter electrolytic cell is approximately 10-15 million yuan. So the value of a 1GW green hydrogen electrolysis cell exceeds 2 billion.
The shipment volume of electrolytic cells is growing rapidly. In 2022, the global shipment will be about 1.2GW, and in 2023, the global shipment of electrolytic cells will exceed 2GW. It is expected that by 2024, the global shipment of electrolytic cells will exceed 3.5GW.
4. Electrolytic cell compressor: a key equipment in the electrolysis water hydrogen production system
