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In April last year, spurred on by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the subsequent energy market chaos, the government published its British Energy Security Strategy. The plan doubled the ambition for low-carbon hydrogen production to 10GW by 2030, at least half of which will be electrolytic.
Renewable power sources such as wind and solar will provide some of the electricity needed for low-carbon electrolysis, which splits water molecules into hydrogen and oxygen. The inherent variability of such systems might make consistent production difficult, however.
Another promising option could be nuclear power, according to several speakers at Engineering Challenges in the Hydrogen Economy 2023, an IMechE event held in March at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London.
Paradigm shift
Nuclear power plants are a promising option for electrolytic production of hydrogen because they can generate reliable, low-carbon electricity 24/7 for 60 years or more, said Allan Simpson, technical lead for nuclear-enabled hydrogen at the National Nuclear Laboratory.
If Hinkley Point C, due to open in 2027, was used to power conventional electrolyser technology, he said it could produce enough hydrogen for 40,000 hydrogen buses or to heat a million homes, “changing the paradigm” of how we use hydrogen. “By including nuclear in the roll-out of the hydrogen economy, nuclear can enable hydrogen to be a greater player in future,” he said.
The technique is already being used at Nine Mile Point nuclear power station in Oswego, New York. The demonstration facility uses 1.25MW per hour to produce 560kg of hydrogen each day.
Low-temperature steam from conventional nuclear technology can reduce the cost of hydrogen production, added Simpson. The heat generated by nuclear fission could even be useful for turning generated hydrogen into other products, such as synthetic hydrocarbons.
“We believe there is a future role that can be played with the flexibility that that provides,” he said. “The economics of a nuclear power plant today are quite constrained by the need to provide electricity at baseload. By providing different products to a variety of markets, it changes the entire way we think about the economics of nuclear.”
Industrial application
Hinkley Point C developer EDF Energy also featured at the IMechE event. Development manager Peter Smith said the company had recently completed a feasibility study on demonstrating solid-oxide electrolysis integrated with nuclear heat and electricity, providing low-carbon hydrogen. The process, which requires novel composite storage tankers to deliver the hydrogen, is being demonstrated using the firm’s existing nuclear power plants in partnership with construction aggregate producer Hanson.
Using nuclear-produced hydrogen in the production of asphalt at hundreds of sites around the UK could prevent hundreds of thousands of tonnes of carbon emissions, said EDF research engineer Olga Dubinin. “Most of those sites are dispersed around the country,” she said. “Some of them are not connected to the natural gas pipeline; the answer to that could be hydrogen.”
Issues remain, however. EDF’s analysis showed that cost competitiveness will rely on falling costs for solid-oxide electrolysers, while transport and storage of hydrogen needs some new – and likely costly – solutions to become practical.
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Content published by Professional Engineering does not necessarily represent the views of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers.