There is a unilateral focus across the G7 countries on using hydrogen as a clean fuel to meet the need for a high density clean energy carrier for decarbonization of our industries and cities through a combustible fuel. Countries with the largest economies globally have pledged to significantly accelerate the use of hydrogen as a clean fuel. The majority of several large corporations are also moving towards the use of hydrogen as a fuel, particularly in sectors that are more challenging to decarbonize such as heavy-duty transport, maritime, metals and other industrial applications.
The emerging technologies to produce green hydrogen generation include electrolysis of water using renewable electricity, as well as hydrogen production from biomass and advanced reforming of fossil fuels. The production of green hydrogen from electrolysis involves using electricity to split water into hydrogen and oxygen (by-product). The development of such technologies will lead to the decarbonization of conventional thermochemical hydrogen production methods, which accounts for around 830 MT of CO2 emissions every year.
Sinclair is developing a cutting-edge green Hydrogen technology which reduces the energy input for hydrogen production by >80% and utilizes domestic wastewater as a feedstock. This innovative approach will bring the cost of Hydrogen to <£2/kg in the short term, with a longer-term trajectory to <£1/kg aided by scalability and mass deployments.
Hydrogen is a zero-emission fuel with a very high energy density (120 MJ per kg; roughly 3 times that of diesel and natural gas). Hydrogen fuel is applicable in both industry and transport, e.g. powering cars, trains, boats and planes in applications which require heat as an input. Traditional methods of Hydrogen production use reforming-based techniques to convert hydrocarbons into hydrogen gas and carbon dioxide, which leads to a large amount of CO2 emissions (9kg of CO2 for every kg of H2). Over 90% of the world’s Hydrogen is currently produced from fossil fuels.
Heavy-duty transport accounts for a third of carbon emissions in the EU, so hydrogen as an energy dense fuel can be used to decarbonize heavy-duty vehicles. Hydrogen is especially beneficial over electricity in this case since electrification of large vehicles is challenging due to the requirement of large batteries and constraints around supply chain for rare earth metals. There is also a potential to use Hydrogen derivatives in internal combustion engines for greater power density over electrical drive train.
The technology portfolio also includes the ability to convert CO2 into carbon-neutral synthetic fuels (CCU). The technology will be a gamechanger for carbon capture, by replacing the capture plant with a much simpler utilization plant. The process simplification and reduced energy input will bring the cost of capture down to <$15/ton.
Clean Fuel
Sr No | Technology | Business Case |
---|---|---|
• Production of Green Hydrogen from waste | ||
1 | Green Hydrogen | • Competitive LCoH with short-term target at <£2/kg and a longer term target of <£1/kg |
• Combined electrolysis with synthetic fuel production reduces overall CAPEX and enhanced process efficiency | ||
• Hydrogen produced at ambient pressure and temperature – need for compression | ||
• Direct conversion of CO2 from flue stack to synthetic fuels | ||
2 | CCU and Synthetic Fuel | • Remove the need for carbon capture plant (significant CAPEX impact) |
• Reduce carbon capture costs to <$15/ton; Enable decentralized CCU | ||
• Development of complete energy system for marine applications, including production of zero emission synthetic fuels and direct power output mechanism | ||
3 | Offshore and Maritime Decarbonization | • Opportunity to decarbonize maritime sector – prioritize new build and retrofits |
• Stable fuel prices (remove dependency on O&G price benchmark) will reduce commercial risks | ||
• Reduce the carbon intensity and cost of Green Ammonia production | ||
4 | Lean GHG Ammonia Production | • Direct Ammonia to power fuel cell technology; Industrial grade safety; Autonomous operation |
• Meet demand in sectors - fertilizers, chemicals and Hydrogen carrier |