[{"command":"openDialog","selector":"#drupal-modal","settings":null,"data":"\u003Cdiv id=\u0022republish_modal_form\u0022\u003E\u003Cform class=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form ecl-form\u0022 data-drupal-selector=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form\u0022 action=\u0022\/en\/article\/modal\/6950\u0022 method=\u0022post\u0022 id=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form\u0022 accept-charset=\u0022UTF-8\u0022\u003E\u003Cp\u003EHorizon articles can be republished for free under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence.\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003EYou must give appropriate credit. We ask you to do this by:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 1) Using the original journalist\u0027s byline\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 2) Linking back to our original story\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 3) Using the following text in the footer: This article was originally published in \u003Ca href=\u0027#\u0027\u003EHorizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003ESee our full republication guidelines \u003Ca href=\u0027\/horizon-magazine\/republish-our-stories\u0027\u003Ehere\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003EHTML for this article, including the attribution and page view counter, is below:\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cdiv class=\u0022js-form-item form-item js-form-type-textarea form-item-body-content js-form-item-body-content ecl-form-group ecl-form-group--text-area form-no-label ecl-u-mv-m\u0022\u003E\n \n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n \u003Ctextarea data-drupal-selector=\u0022edit-body-content\u0022 aria-describedby=\u0022edit-body-content--description\u0022 id=\u0022edit-body-content\u0022 name=\u0022body_content\u0022 rows=\u00225\u0022 cols=\u002260\u0022 class=\u0022form-textarea ecl-text-area\u0022\u003E\u003Ch2\u003ECan we produce enough green hydrogen to save the world? \u003C\/h2\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0027Hydrogen and fuels derived (from it) is capable of reducing the carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuels in the very, very long term, down to zero,\u2019 said Klaus Scheffer, project manager at Siemens. \u2018You don\u2019t need fossil energies in a future world. I hope my kids will see that.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe technology is green hydrogen \u2013 using an electric current to convert water into oxygen and hydrogen \u2013 and if this is powered with renewable energy then it produces no carbon emissions. If this is, in turn, used to provide a clean source of fuel for industry or to balance the electricity grid, it could help alter the future of the planet.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe main problem so far has been how to make hydrogen in large quantities cleanly. Currently, about \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.weforum.org\/agenda\/2018\/05\/this-forgotten-element-could-be-the-key-to-our-green-energy-future-heres-why\/\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022 rel=\u0022noopener noreferrer\u0022\u003E96 percent of global hydrogen\u003C\/a\u003E is produced by reforming methane, which produces carbon dioxide as a waste product. Green hydrogen produced with this electrolysis method, however, is a much cleaner alternative.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EScheffer is helping to create a source of green hydrogen for use at a steel plant in Linz, Austria, as part of a project called \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/cordis.europa.eu\/project\/rcn\/207465_en.html\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022 rel=\u0022noopener noreferrer\u0022\u003EH2FUTURE\u003C\/a\u003E. The goal of this project is not just to produce green hydrogen from renewable energy, but to see if it can in turn be used to produce steel with a lower carbon footprint, dubbed green steel.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018Steel production is one of the industries which are dominating the carbon dioxide emissions in the world,\u2019 said Scheffer. \u2018The steel production process applied in Linz uses loads of coal for steel production, (so there are) a lot of carbon dioxide emissions.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003EViable\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe first step of this project is to test if the technology is viable for commercial use \u2013 the electrolyser is set to begin full operations in spring 2019. Running at a capacity of six megawatts, the plant will produce about 1,200 cubic metres of green hydrogen an hour when it is fully operational.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EIt is admittedly a small test \u2013 the electrolyser will reduce just a fraction of carbon emissions at the plant. But this is only a pilot project, with designs on scaling this up for bigger hydrogen production in future, using an electrolyser running at a capacity of 100 megawatts.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ENear Cologne in Germany, meanwhile, under a project called\u0026nbsp;\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/cordis.europa.eu\/project\/rcn\/213072_en.html\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022 rel=\u0022noopener noreferrer\u0022\u003EREFHYNE\u003C\/a\u003E, ITM Power is developing a ten-megawatt electrolyser\u0026nbsp;which will begin operations in 2020. It is being installed on the Rhineland refinery, operated by Shell Deutschland Oils, which currently relies on steam reforming to produce hydrogen.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThis is Germany\u2019s largest refinery, consuming about 180,000 tonnes of hydrogen a year. The new electrolyser will provide a modest amount of hydrogen towards this total \u2013 about 1,300 tonnes a year. But if the trial is successful, then the technology could be expanded.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cblockquote class=\u0022tw-text-center tw-text-blue tw-font-bold tw-text-2xl lg:tw-w-1\/2 tw-border-2 tw-border-blue tw-p-12 tw-my-8 lg:tw-m-12 lg:tw--ml-16 tw-float-left\u0022\u003E\n \u003Cspan class=\u0022tw-text-5xl tw-rotate-180\u0022\u003E\u201c\u003C\/span\u003E\n \u003Cp class=\u0022tw-font-serif tw-italic\u0022\u003E\u2018Steel production is one of the industries which are dominating the carbon dioxide emissions in the world.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cfooter\u003E\n \u003Ccite class=\u0022tw-not-italic tw-font-normal tw-text-sm tw-text-black\u0022\u003EKlaus Scheffer, Project Manager, Siemens\u003C\/cite\u003E\n \u003C\/footer\u003E\n\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\n\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAside from producing hydrogen, REFHYNE has another purpose that helps make a business case for its use. The electrolyser can be turned on or off very quickly, meaning it can provide a grid balancing service to cope with periods of high or low demand in the electrical grid.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018The utility (companies) need to balance intermittent renewables with base plants,\u2019 said Dr Frithjof Kublik, senior consultant for business development at the Rhineland refinery. \u2018The electrolyser has the advantage that it can turn on or off very fast, in a few seconds, and from that point of view you can offer a grid balancing service.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EGrid balancing services benefit from flexibility, which \u2018the utility company is willing to pay a price for,\u2019 said Kublik.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EIt\u2019s also something being investigated in Denmark, where a project called \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/cordis.europa.eu\/project\/rcn\/199464_en.html\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022 rel=\u0022noopener noreferrer\u0022\u003EHyBalance\u003C\/a\u003E\u0026nbsp;has developed a demonstration plant in Hobro that produces hydrogen from water electrolysis when the amount of electricity being produced by renewables exceeds that needed by the grid.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018The project is really to test how we can use the renewable energy from the grid and transform it into hydrogen, that can be used either in industry or for energy applications,\u2019 said Caroline Le Mer, Hydrogen Energy Europe Director at Air Liquide, which coordinates the project.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cfigure role=\u0022group\u0022\u003E\n\u003Cimg alt=\u0022Image credit: Horizon\u0022 height=\u0022668\u0022 src=\u0022\/research-and-innovation\/sites\/default\/files\/hm\/IMCEUpload\/factoid_1.jpg\u0022 title=\u0022Image credit: Horizon\u0022 width=\u00221980\u0022\u003E\n\u003Cfigcaption class=\u0022tw-italic tw-mb-4\u0022\u003EImage credit: Horizon\u003C\/figcaption\u003E\n\u003C\/figure\u003E\n\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ESpikes\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe plant opened in September 2018 and will run for 15 years, using the same electrolysing process as H2FUTURE and REFHYNE to produce hydrogen, which is known as proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolysis. More traditional electrolysers rely on alkaline electrolysis, but PEM is advantageous as it can deal with spikes in supply, such as from renewable energies like wind and solar.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThat\u2019s particularly useful in Denmark, where wind power is abundant \u2013 in 2015, 42% of its electricity was \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/environment\/2016\/jan\/18\/denmark-broke-world-record-for-wind-power-in-2015\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022 rel=\u0022noopener noreferrer\u0022\u003Eproduced by wind power\u003C\/a\u003E. At the HyBalance demonstration plant, this is used to produce hydrogen when electricity levels are low, such as at night, or when wind levels are high.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe gas is either sold to industry or used for powering hydrogen cars, with the overall goal being to show that hydrogen can be produced in large enough quantities via renewable energy to be useful to industries.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAt a later stage, the hydrogen could be kept in salt caves for future use \u2013 a low cost way to store large quantities.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cem\u003EThe research in this article was funded through the Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking between the EU and industry. 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