The photo is sourced from The National Grid
Among these alternatives is a solution from Aurora Hydrogen, which will use methane to produce hydrogen. Instead of steam reforming, the company will use high temperature pyrolysis in an inert atmosphere: CH4 will split into hydrogen and carbon under the influence of microwave heating occurring in the absence of air and water. This method will not require the use of expensive carbon capture & storage technologies and will provide an 80% reduction in energy costs compared to water electrolysis, which is used together with renewables to produce green hydrogen.
Another alternative is the prospecting of natural hydrogen, including via mapping the areas of Earth’s crust, which would be most favourable for hydrogen production. Natural hydrogen (also called white hydrogen) can be formed through the hydration of iron-rich minerals, as well as the splitting of water molecules during the radioactive decay of uranium or thorium. These processes occur in Earth’s crust with igneous rocks (such as ultrabasites and granitoids) characterised by high magnetic susceptibility, which makes them easier to map. Temperature in some parts of Earth’s crust could also be key to pinpointing hydrogen, since H2 formation occurs at temperatures from 160 to 250 degrees Celsius. Getech plans to use both of these types of clues to create digital maps of underground hydrogen deposits.
A technology developed by Powerhouse Energy for producing hydrogen from plastic could be used as an alternative. Initially, plastic waste is crushed into pieces of the same size to undergo thermal processing in a special chamber, where they melt under high temperatures and turn into a viscous alloy, which evaporates into synthesis gas – a mixture of methane, hydrogen and carbon monoxide. The synthesis gas is then fed to a drying chamber to be cleaned from inert plastic residues, after which it can be used to produce hydrogen using steam reforming.
