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The Green
Hydrogen Pipeline & Shipping Question
To transition to a green hydrogen future,
we need access to cheap renewable energy, clean water, and economical
electrolyzers. These
parts of the puzzle seem to be falling into
place.
Now,
Rethink Energy is tackling the question of
how this hydrogen will be transported and what it will cost. Depending
on the distance travelled: either pipelines or liquid organic hydrogen
carriers (LOHC) transported in ships would be the transportation
method. “Pipelines and hydrogen ships to dominate H2 distribution,”
Rethink Energy writes. It is expected that the cost of transport will
be up to 50% of the cost of hydrogen delivered. It may prove to be
more important than the cost of production.
“By 2050, Rethink Energy has forecast
that 735 million tons of green hydrogen will be produced each year,
using renewable energy to power electrolysis. Spanning from aviation
to steelmaking, the use of hydrogen to decarbonize new industries will
be central to the economic shift away from fossil fuels towards those
harnessing their own wind, solar, and hydropower resources.” You can
get a copy of this report on hydrogen transport by contacting
simon@rethinkresearch.biz.
“Globally, the average cost of hydrogen
production will fall to $1.50 per kilogram by 2030,” says Harry
Morgan, Rethink Energy’s chief hydrogen analyst, “and while there will
be a huge convergence in global production costs, which currently vary
between $3 and $7 per kilogram, countries like Australia, with
exceptional wind and solar resources, will see costs fall as low as
$1.20 per kilogram.”
Energy distribution will need new
infrastructure focused on low-cost storage, distribution, and
delivery.
“Over distances of up to 5,000 kilometers
pipelines are likely to provide the most cost-effective means of
delivery. … Using compression to deliver hydrogen at greater densities
and volumes, pipeline delivery over a 1,000-kilometer distance will
cost just $0.54 per kilogram.”
What about repurposing existing natural
gas pipelines? “With modern gas infrastructure requiring simple
changes to hardware (valves, compressors, etc.), such an approach
could add to the capital requirement by up to 45%.”
With a little bit of distance, though,
shipping hydrogen is expected to be cheaper. “Once beyond 7,000
kilometres, the ability to transport hydrogen on board ships becomes
more cost effective — adding around $1.45 per kilogram of hydrogen.”
Problems still need to be resolved around
how to ship the hydrogen. As a gas? As a liquid? As ammonia or some
other LOHC? Shipping hydrogen as a gas is hugely inefficient. “Liquid
hydrogen, which required very little processing to be ‘unpacked,’ has
distinct advantages here. However, maintaining temperatures of minus
250 degrees Celsius poses a huge engineering challenge; boil off
losses from liquid hydrogen increase with distance, reducing
competitiveness.
“LOHCs — with reduced packing costs —
come in at between $1.48 and $1.86 per kilogram over distances between
7,000 and 20,000 kilometers. Ammonia, despite being the densest
carrier of hydrogen, is severely limited by the cost of cracking it
into pure hydrogen for consumption (approximately $1.4 per kilogram on
average).”
As each problem is solved, industry moves
on to the next challenge. It is fascinating to watch the green
hydrogen economy take shape.
Green Play Ammonia™, Yielder® NFuel Energy.
Spokane, Washington. 99212
www.exactrix.com
509 995 1879 cell, Pacific.
exactrix@exactrix.com
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