United Kingdom

In many processes where hydrogen may be released from below a liquid surface there has been concern regarding how such releases might ultimately disperse in an ullage space. Knowledge of the extent and persistence of any flammable volume formed is needed for hazardous area classification as well as for validation of explosion modelling or experiments. Following an initial release of hydrogen the overall process can be subdivided into three stag Read More

In addition to carbon capture and storage efforts are also being focussed on using captured CO2 both directly as a working fluid and in chemical conversion processes as a key strategy for mitigating climate change and achieving resource efficiency. These processes require large amounts of energy which should come from sustainable and ideally renewable sources. A strong value chain is required to support the production of valuable products from CO2 . Read More

Explosion venting is a method commonly used to prevent or minimize damage to an enclosure caused by an accidental explosion. An estimate of the maximum overpressure generated though explosion is an important parameter in the design of the vents. Various engineering models (Bauwens et al. 2012 Molkov and Bragin 2015) and European (EN 14994 ) and USA standards (NFPA 68) are available to predict such overpressure. In this study their pe Read More

The world’s shipping fleet is responsible for approximately 0.9 Gt of CO2 emissions annually around 2.9 per cent of the world’s man-made emissions. Under an IEA ‘business as usual’ scenario this is forecast to rise to almost 1.7 Gt per year by 2050. The industry’s principal regulatory body the International Maritime Organization (IMO) aims to reduce world shipping’s greenhouse gas emissions in line with the 2015 Paris Agreement targeting a 50 per c Read More

The thermal hazards from ignited under-expanded cryogenic releases are not yet fully understood and reliable predictive tools are missing. This study aims at validation of a CFD model to simulate flame length and radiative heat flux for cryogenic hydrogen jet fires. The simulation results are compared against the experimental data by Sandia National Laboratories on cryogenic hydrogen fires from storage with pressure up to 5 bar abs and temperature in th Read More

The influence of the addition of refractory metals (molybdenum and tantalum) on the hydrogenation properties of FeTi intermetallic phase-based alloys was investigated. The suspended droplet alloying technique was applied to fabricate FeTiTa-based and FeTiMo-based alloys. The phase composition and hydrogen storage properties of the samples were investigated. The samples modified with the refractory metals exhibited lower plateau pressures and lowe Read More

The heating sector makes up 10% of the United Kingdom’s carbon footprint and residential homes account for a majority of demand. At present central heating from a natural gas-fired boiler is the most common system in the UK but low or zero-carbon hydrogen and renewable electricity are the two primary energy replacement options to reduce the carbon footprint. An important consideration is how using either energy source would affect heating co Read More

During 2020 the Scottish Government in partnership with Highlands and Islands Enterprise and Scottish Enterprise commissioned Arup and E4Tech to carry out a hydrogen assessment to deepen our evidence base in order to inform our policies on hydrogen going forward. The assessment aims to investigate how and where hydrogen may fit within the evolving energy system technically geographically and economically. To assist in this consideration a key pa Read More

This project provides evidence to identify the key innovation needs across the UK’s energy system to inform the prioritisation of public sector investment in low-carbon innovation including any future phases of the Department for Business Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) Energy Innovation1 Programme. The BEIS Energy Innovation Programme aims to accelerate the commercialisation of innovative clean energy technologies and processes into the 202 Read More

About 3 billion people use conventional carbon-based fuels such as wood charcoal and animal dung for their daily cooking needs. Cooking with biomass causes deforestation and habitat loss emissions of greenhouse gases and smoke pollution that affects people’s health and well-being. Hydrogen can play a role in enabling clean and safe cooking by reducing household air pollution and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. This first-of-a-kind review stu Read More

An update on the proposed commercial frameworks for transport and storage power and industrial carbon capture business models.

This Discussion Paper was commissioned by Zukunft ERDGAS to contribute to the debate concerning the deep decarbonisation of the European energy sector required to meet the Paris Agreement targets. Previous discussion papers have put forward decarbonisation pathways that rely heavily on ‘All-Electric’ solutions. These depend predominantly on renewable electricity to deliver decarbonisation of all sectors. This paper offers an alternative to an ‘All- Read More

We have studied hydrogen gas production using photocatalysis from C2-C5 carbon chain polyols cyclic alcohols and mono and di-saccharides using palladium nanoparticles supported on a TiO2 catalyst. For many of the polyols the hydrogen evolution rate is found to be dictated by the number of hydroxyl groups and available a-hydrogens in the structure. However the rule only applies to polyols and cyclic alcohols while the sugar activity is limited by the bulky st Read More

The House of Lords Science and Technology Committee will hear from leading researchers about anticipated developments in batteries and fuel cells over the next ten years that could contribute to meeting the net-zero target.The Committee continues its inquiry into the Role of batteries and fuel cells in achieving Net Zero. It will ask a panel of experts about batteries hearing about the current state-of-the-art in technologies that are currently in de Read More

The transition to low carbon energy and transport systems requires an unprecedented roll-out of new infrastructure technologies containing significant quantities of critical raw materials. Many of these technologies are based on general purpose technologies such as permanent magnets and electric motors that are common across different infrastructure systems. Circular economy initiatives that aim to institute better resource management practices Read More

The next few decades are expected to be among the most transformative the energy sector has ever seen. Arup envisages a world with a much more diverse range of heating sources and with significantly lower emissions and renewable energy powering transport.As part of this the establishment of a strong hydrogen economy is a very real opportunity and is within reaching distance. Our report uses the UK as a case study example and explores Read More

This paper presents a novel system design that considerably improves the entrapment of terrestrial ultraviolet (UV) irradiance in a customized honeycomb structure to produce hydrogen at a standard rate of 7.57 slpm for places with a UV index > 11. Thermolysis of high salinity water is done by employing a solid oxide electrolyzer cell (SOEC) which comprises three customized novel active optical subsystems to filter track and concentrate terrestrial UV sola Read More

Energy storage is a promising approach to address the challenge of intermittent generation from renewables on the electric grid. In this work we evaluate energy storage with a regenerative hydrogen fuel cell (RHFC) using net energy analysis. We examine the most widely installed RHFC configuration containing an alkaline water electrolyzer and a PEM fuel cell. To compare RHFC's to other storage technologies we use two energy return ratios: the electrical Read More

The combination of offshore wind and green hydrogen provides major opportunities for job creation economic growth and regional regeneration as well as attracting inward investment alongside delivering the emission reductions needed to achieve climate neutrality. In order to get to Net Zero emissions in 2050 the UK is likely to need a minimum of 75GW of offshore wind (OSW) and modelling of the energy system indicates that hydrogen will play a major Read More

Hydrogen is often described as the fuel of the future especially for application in hydrogen powered fuel-cell vehicles (HFCV’s). However its widespread implementation in this role has been thwarted by the lack of a lightweight safe on-board hydrogen storage material. Here we show that benign readily available hydrocarbon wax is capable of rapidly releasing large amounts of hydrogen through microwave-assisted catalytic decomposition. This di Read More

Carbon capture and storage (CCS) is broadly recognised as having the potential to play a key role in meeting climate change targets delivering low carbon heat and power decarbonising industry and more recently its ability to facilitate the net removal of CO2 from the atmosphere. However despite this broad consensus and its technical maturity CCS has not yet been deployed on a scale commensurate with the ambitions articulated a decade ago. Thus i Read More

The House of Lords Science and Technology Committee will hear from officials research funders and leading research consortia about the UK’s strategy for research and development of batteries and fuel cells to help meet the net-zero target.The Committee will question officials from government departments and research councils about the UK’s increased support for battery development and how the initiatives and funding will evolve. The Committee w Read More

For a green economy to be possible in the near future hydrogen production from water is a sought-after alternative to fossil fuels. It is however important to put things into context with respect to global CO2 emission and the role of hydrogen in curbing it. The present world annual production of hydrogen is about 70 million metric tons of which almost 50% is used to make ammonia NH3 (that is mostly used for fertilizers) and about 15% is used for other che Read More

A low pressure superheated hydrogen-steam system has been used to accelerate the oxidation kinetics while keeping the electrochemical conditions similar to those of the primary water in a pressurized water reactor. The initiation has been investigated using a Constant Extension Rate Tensile (CERT) test. Tests were performed on flat tapered specimens made from Type 316L austenitic stainless steel with strain rates of 2×10-6 and 2×10-8 ms-1 at room t Read More

Study setting out a vision and plan for a multi-modal hydrogen transport hub within the UK. The study considers the:size of operational trialsquantity of green hydrogen requiredresearch and development facilities which will support a living labgreen hydrogen infrastructure required including:productionstoragedistributionThe study uses Tees Valley as an example region although the blueprint may be applied to other areas.This Read More

Hydrogen has been identified as a potential energy vector to decarbonise the transport and chemical sectors and achieve global greenhouse gas reduction targets. Despite ongoing efforts hydrogen technologies are often assessed focusing on their global warming potential while overlooking other impacts or at most including additional metrics that are not easily interpretable. Herein a wide range of alternative technologies have been assessed to determi Read More

As part of FCH-JU funded HyCoRA project running from 2014 to 2017 28 gaseous and 13 particulate samples were collected from hydrogen refuelling stations in Europe. Samples were collected with commercial sampling instruments and analysis performed in compliance with prevailing fuel quality standards. Sampling was conducted with focus on diversity in feedstock as well as commissioning date of the HRS. Results indicate that the strategy for samp Read More

The Energy Innovation Needs Assessment (EINA) aims to identify the key innovation needs across the UK’s energy system to inform the prioritisation of public sector investment in low-carbon innovation. Using an analytical methodology developed by the Department for Business Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) the EINA takes a system level approach and values innovations in a technology in terms of the system-level benefits a technology innovation provi Read More

The hydrogen economy is a proposition for the distribution of energy by using hydrogen in order to potentially eliminate carbon emissions and end our reliance on fossil fuels. Some futuristic forecasters view the hydrogen economy as the ultimate carbon free economy. Hydrogen operated vehicles are on trial in many countries. The use of hydrogen as an energy source for buildings is in its infancy but research and development is evolving. Hydroge Read More

As energy systems transition from fossil-based to low-carbon they face many challenges particularly concerning energy security and flexibility. Hydrogen may help to overcome these challenges with potential as a transport fuel for heating energy storage conversion to electricity and in industry. Despite these opportunities hydrogen has historically had a limited role in influential global energy scenarios. Whilst more recent studies are beginning to include Read More

Low carbon hydrogen could have a significant role to play in meeting the UK’s Net Zero target: the Committee on Climate Change (CCC) estimates that up to 270TWh of low carbon hydrogen could be needed in its ‘Further Ambition’ scenario. However at present there is no large-scale production of low carbon hydrogen in the UK not least as it is more costly than most high carbon alternatives. For hydrogen to be the viable option envisaged by the CCC pr Read More

The APPG on Hydrogen’s latest report urges the Government to move quickly on hydrogen and set ambitious policies to unlock investment create employment opportunities and support the UK’s net-zero targets.The APPG on Hydrogen’s report developed as part of its inquiry into ‘How the UK’s hydrogen sector can help support the UK’s economic recovery’ sets out 15 recommendations to support and accelerate the growth of the UK’s hydrogen se Read More

The paper presents a numerical investigation of the critical roles played by the chemical compositions of syngas on laminar diffusion flame instabilities. Three different flame phenomena – stable flickering and tip-cutting – are formulated by varying the syngas fuel rate from 0.2 to 1.4 SLPM. Following the satisfactory validation of numerical results with Darabkhani et al. [1] the study explored the consequence of each species (H2 CO CH4 CO2 N2) in the syngas c Read More

The single-phase multi-principal-component CoFeMnTiVZr alloy was obtained by rapid solidification and examined by a combination of electrochemical methods and gas–solid reactions. X-ray diffraction and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy analyses reveal a hexagonal Laves-phase structure (type C14). Cyclic voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy investigations in the hydrogen absorption/desorption region give insi Read More

The European Union (EU) has adopted ambitious decarbonization targets for 2050.Renewable electricity and electrification are the key drivers but are not sufficient on their own to meet the targets. A number of countries expect decarbonized gas (e.g. renewable hydrogen and biomethane) to be part of a future decarbonized energy system.Within that context this paper examines proposals recently issued by Spain’s energy regulator (CNMC) to define the Read More

Since the COP 21 meeting in Paris in December 2015 there has been a growing realisation that with the long-term objective that the energy system should be approaching carbon-neutrality by 2050 continuing to burn significant quantities of fossil-derived natural gas will not be sustainable. If existing natural gas infrastructure is to avoid becoming stranded assets plans to decarbonise the gas system need to be developed as a matter of urgency in the next Read More

Interest in hydrogen as one route to the decarbonisation of energy systems has risen rapidly over the past few years with the publication of a number of hydrogen strategies from countries across the global energy economy. The momentum in Europe has increased sharply this month with the publication of an EU strategy to incorporate hydrogen into its plans for a net zero emission future. This Comment reviews the key elements of this strategy and pro Read More

As an alternative to the construction of new infrastructure repurposing existing natural gas pipelines for hydrogen transportation has been identified as a low-cost strategy for substituting natural gas with hydrogen in the wake of the energy transition. In line with that a 342 km 3600 natural gas pipeline was used in this study to simulate some technical implications of delivering the same amount of energy with different blends of natural gas and hydrogen and Read More

CO2 capture utilization and storage (CCUS) is recognized as a uniquely important option in global efforts to control anthropogenic greenhouse-gas (GHG) emissions. Despite significant progress globally in advancing the maturity of the various component technologies and their assembly into full-chain demonstrations a gap remains on the path to widespread deployment in many countries. In this paper we focus on the importance of business mo Read More

This UKERC Research Atlas Landscape provides an overview of the competencies and publicly funded activities in fuel cell research development and demonstration (RD&D) in the UK. It covers the main funding streams research providers infrastructure networks and UK participation in international activities.

The Oxford Institute for Energy Studies held a Workshop on “The Future of Gas Networks” to examine decarbonisation plans and the impact of the potential growth in the use of renewable and decarbonised gases in Europe. Participants included representatives from nine European gas network companies (both transmission and distribution) technical experts in decarbonisation regulators government officials and academics. This document summarises the Read More

This paper presents techno-economic modelling results of a nationwide hydrogen fuel supply chain (HFSC) that includes renewable hydrogen production transportation and dispensing systems for fuel cell electric buses (FCEBs) in Ireland. Hydrogen is generated by electrolysers located at each existing Irish wind farm using curtailed or available wind electricity. Additional electricity is supplied by on-site photovoltaic (PV) arrays and stored using lithium-ion b Read More

Following up on our report Uncomfortable Home Truths: why Britain urgently needs a low carbon heat strategy Pipeline to 2050 sets out recommendations for BEIS’ forthcoming Heat and Buildings Strategy. Based on the findings of five roundtables held between January and July 2020 with cross-party parliamentarians policy-makers and experts from industry academia and non-governmental organisations the publication calls for a joined-up app Read More

The high environmental impacts of transport mean that there is an increasing interest in utilising low-carbon alternative energy carriers and powertrains within the sector. While electricity has been mooted as the energy carrier of choice for passenger vehicles as the mass and range of the vehicle increases electrification becomes more difficult. This paper reviews the shipping aviation and haulage sectors and a range of low-carbon energy carriers (el Read More

The group concluded that the transition to Net Zero can and will occur and will leave a positive legacy for future generations. They examined the UK as a complex adaptive system and identified recommendations for accelerating progress and reducing the risks of failure. The Group recognised an opportunity for Sensitive Intervention Points (SIPs) coinciding with these recommendations pointing to opportunities to accelerate a transition towards Net Zer Read More

A final report covering covering activity in 2021 and early 2022 including: standards and certification safety assessment and appliance and meter development. It has a foreword from Mark Taylor BEIS Deputy Director for Energy Innovation and an introduction letter from Arup Hy4Heat Director Mark Neller.

Government has reviewed the evidence base on options for achieving long term heat decarbonisation. This report provides an overview of the key issues arising from our review and seeks to:highlight the different characteristics of the main alternative sources of low carbon heat and the approaches to achieving transformational changeset out strategically important issues ‘strategic inferences’ which we have drawn from the evidence available t Read More

Hydrogen is increasingly being positioned as an important component of the UK’s Net Zero ambitions and commitments. In particular hydrogen could be an appropriate way to decarbonise the heat produced for domestic and industrial buildings. It is possible that hydrogen could replace natural gas in the UK gas network achieving key carbon emissions reduction targets while enabling homes to be heated to a similar level and standard as they currently are Read More

The European gas industry has argued that gas can be a bridging fuel in the transition to decarbonised energy markets because of the advantages of switching from coal to gas and the role of gas in backing up intermittent renewable power generation. While this remains a logical approach for some countries in others it has proved either not relevant or generally unsuccessful in gaining acceptance with either policymakers or the environmenta Read More

A consortiumcomprising Cadent Gas Health and Safety Executive – Science Division ITMPower Keele University Northern Gas Networks and Progressive Energy is undertaking the second phase of the research project HyDeploy. The project the first two phase ofwhich are funded under the UK Network Innovation Competition scheme aims to demonstrate that natural gas containing levels of hydrogen beyond the upper limit set out in Schedule 3 o Read More