Hydrogen Types and Applications in Renewable Energy

Hydrogen's Role in Renewable Energy Applications.

Hydrogen is one of the renewable energy sources like solar energy, wind energy, and other renewable sources. Hydrogen is the most abundant chemical element in our universe. it combines about 75 % of the normal matter. Hydrogen is a clean gas with no CO2 emission when used. It has a high energy density which is considered more efficient compared to traditional fuels like heavy oil or natural gas.

It is stored in a high-pressure storage and transported from one place to another easily. It is easily controlled in energy management applications when it is used in fuel cells with solar panels, Batteries, and supercapacitors. In this article, we will explore all about the Hydrogen Types and Applications in Renewable Energy.

Hydrogen and its application

What is the Hydrogen (H2)?

Hydrogen is the first element in the periodic table where elements are arranged based on their atomic number, electronic distributions, and chemical properties. Its symbol is H and its atomic number is 1

What are the Hydrogen properties?

The properties of Hydrogen are that it is a non-toxic gas under the standard test condition (STC) which is at standard values of temperature (293K and 20 °C), pressure (1 atm), and humidity (0), a chemical substance composed of two of the same elements with an H2 formula. It is odorless, colorless, and tasteless. It is also lighter than air rather than the lightest element. It is flammable can catch fire easily by any other flame, and is insoluble in water.

Normally Hydrogen is a non-metallic element but, at very high extreme pressure, it turns metallic. The Hydrogen atom includes one positive charge which is the proton in the nucleus and an electron as a negative charge and it has no neutrons. Hydrogen could be represented in many forms other than gasses and metallic. It could be in the form of a liquid, slush, solid, or plasma.

What is the history of Hydrogen?

Hydrogen gas existed at the beginning of the universe when the Big Bang happened. Earth is very rich in Hydrogen in the form of water in oceans, lakes, and rivers. Hydrogen also exists in all organic compounds vegetables and animal tissues which have Carbon-Hydrogen bonds. Also, the Hydrogen is present in petroleum products. The first production by humans started at the beginning of the 16th century. In the 17th, it was used to produce water from Hydrogen when it was burnt in the presence of Oxygen. The name of Hydrogen is deducted from water formed which is Hydrogen in Greek.

What are the types of Hydrogen?

1- Grey Hydrogen.

Grey Hydrogen is the Hydrogen produced from splitting the methane element into Hydrogen and CO2. It also can be produced from coal. It produces a high amount of CO2 which is the main reason for climate change. That is why it may be called brown or black Hydrogen. It is also produced industrially

2- Blue Hydrogen.

is the Hydrogen produced from fossil fuels such as natural gas and oil reforming process called gasification. In the gasification process, synthesis gases are a group of gasses that combine Hydrogen, carbon dioxide, and carbon monoxide and are produced by the reaction of natural gas with steam having a very high temperature. During this process, the produced CO2 is captured by special and modern technology and processes and stored to decrease the emission of CO2.

3- Turquoise Hydrogen.

It is a process like the grey for Hydrogen production from splitting the methane but, it uses technologies to maximize the produced CO2 and increase the storing time as much as possible. It could catch about (90-95%) of CO2 as a solid and long-term storage.

4- Green Hydrogen.

Green Hydrogen is the Hydrogen produced by using a renewable energy source to split the water into oxygen and Hydrogen. It collects the advantages of renewable sources such as availability and low CO2 emission.

What are the advantages of Hydrogen?

1- Hydrogen is a renewable energy source.

In the electrolysis process, if the electrical power used to split water into Hydrogen and Oxygen was generated from renewable sources like solar cells and wind power generators, the produced Hydrogen then will be considered as a renewable element.

2- No CO2 emissions when used in electricity generation.

When using Hydrogen in electricity generation it also produces water as a by-product with no carbon dioxide CO2 emission. Which is considered an advantage over fossil fuels in electricity generation in boilers and gas turbines.

3- High energy density.

Hydrogen produces water and generates heat when it combines with oxygen in the presence of flame. leases heat. The development makes it easy to deal with Hydrogen and makes it one of the highly efficient energy-density elements.

4- Hydrogen can be stored.

When using renewable energy sources for Hydrogen production like solar cells or wind turbines, the produced Hydrogen quantity is stable depending on the weather conditions so an important advantage of Hydrogen is that it can be stored in good weather or by non-renewable energy to be used in the time bad weather.

5- Hydrogen can be used in heavy industries as a fuel. 

Hydrogen could be used in heavy industrial manufacturing like glass and steel manufacturing processes
in combustion chambers. but this process considerably has low efficiency and causes high levels of emissions.

6- Good potential for investment.

The development and improvement of the production of Hydrogen as well as the the renewable energy sources in Hydrogen production make it a good investment in power generation large-scale projects.

7-Sustainable and promising fuel.

As Hydrogen has been used in electricity generation since the 19th century, it is considered stable and dependable and we can let it never run out depending on its availability. Because of that and its advantages and performance, it could be easily used in space rockets and spacecraft.

How does the Hydrogen be transported and distributed?

1- Liquid Hydrogen Tankers.

in this process, Hydrogen is cooled first to a certain value of temperature making the Hydrogen in the liquid state. The Hydrogen transportation in that process is more efficient when we compare it with the high-pressure tube trailer because it could be used for long distances although it is more expensive. This process has a disadvantage such as that the liquid Hydrogen will be evaporated if it is not used at the exact time when it reaches its final destination otherwise, the Hydrogen will be lost.

2- Hydrogen pipes.

are the cheapest method for Hydrogen transportation and distribution in the pipelines where a large volume of Hydrogen can be transported or distributed. The main disadvantage of that way is that we cannot transfer large capacity through it.

3- High-Pressure Tankers

the high-pressure tube trailers examples used for Hydrogen Transportation and distribution examples could be represented as railcars, trucks, barrages, and ships. This process is very expensive and is suitable for short distances (about 200 miles) miles or less.

What are the applications of Hydrogen? 

The Hydrogen element is used in many applications because of its advantages. These applications could be listed as follows:

1. Hydrogen is used in power generation plants to produce electricity by firing the plant with Hydrogen instead of natural gas.
2. Hydrogen is used as a fuel in space rockets and spaceships.
3. It is used in Hydrogen fuel cells in hybrid cars.
4. It is chemically used in fertilizer manufacturing.
5. Hydrogen is used in petroleum. 

Hydrogen storage

Currently, the hydrogen industry focuses on advancing green hydrogen production using renewable energy sources like solar and wind. for example, electrolysis technology is gaining traction due to its low carbon footprint. in the next articles, we will discuss more about hydrogen in detail.

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