The use of hydrogen as a fuel can be scaled up using existing natural gas infrastructure until it is widespread enough to merit separate or newly built networks, according to experts speaking at the World Hydrogen Summit today.

Gas pipelines are already being tested for their ability to carry hydrogen safely. In the Netherlands, a 10km stretch of gas pipeline has been successful carrying a blend of hydrogen as part of a demonstration project.

“Blending allows production to scale up” Green, National Grid

Meanwhile, the UK hopes to use its natural gas infrastructure to carry hydrogen. However, it will run extensive tests first as part of its Future Grid project, according to Antony Green, head of hydrogen at the National Grid. “The idea is that we work out how to go about conversion of our assets and develop a hydrogen backbone for the UK,” he said.

The project will take sections of decommissioned pipeline from around the country and run hydrogen through them in a test facility at a 2pc, 20pc and 100pc blend with natural gas to see how well the pipes perform.

Hydrogen in high concentrations and at high pressures can damage the steel in conventional gas pipelines over time, but much depends on the age and construction of the pipe. Testing has already shown that blending at mixes of up to 20pc is a realistic possibility, and domestic boilers can burn a mix of hydrogen and natural gas at that concentration without needing to be repurposed, Green added. “Blending allows production to scale up without significant additional costs,” he said.

The UK would then look to trial certain towns or villages with 100pc hydrogen by using so-called deblending technologies in the future. Deblending technology will also be key in allowing gas infrastructure to be repurposed to carry hydrogen for industrial as well as domestic applications, according to Philip Severin of engineering firm Linde.

“You can use this in both the chemical sector and for fuel cells,” he said. “There is an advantage both cost-wise and time-wise [over constructing new infrastructure].”

Pipeline options

Preliminary studies by the US Department of Energy show that the higher the concentrations of hydrogen sent through natural gas pipelines the greater the upgrade and maintenance costs.

At some point in the future a business case might therefore arise for the construction of a new pipeline infrastructure, according to Green. “Ultimately you may see pipelines side-by-side,” he said.

UK will test hydrogen blends of 2pc, 20pc and 100pc at new facility

But significant policy support in all areas of the value chain will be required to reach this point. Incentives for production and use will have to go hand-in-hand with the development of infrastructure, according to Troy Michaud, of hydrogen fuel cell manufacturer Fuelcell Energy.

“Gaining momentum will require a full ecosystem of incentives in all the areas that we need,” he said. “Until that time pipelines that run a blend of hydrogen and natural gas are going to help us get there.”

The use of industrial clusters as proof-of-concept for the transport and distraction of pure hydrogen will all help encourage governments to develop policies for a full infrastructure rollout, Green and Linde agreed.

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Author: Tom Young