Green hydrogen is in great demand but in limited supply. Today, most hydrogen is fossil-based and generated through high-emitting processes. Green hydrogen has primarily been produced using electrolysis, in which water is split into hydrogen and oxygen using electricity. However, this represents a very low share of the world’s total hydrogen production. Generating green hydrogen requires substantial amounts of renewable energy, which is not yet widely available. This energy is also critical for the direct electrification of downstream sectors.
According to the German National Hydrogen Strategy, a maximum of approximately one-sixth of the forecasted demand for green hydrogen can be covered by Germany’s domestic production by 2030. So far, the Federal Republic has wanted to close the supply gap through imports from abroad. However, hydrogen imports will remain challenging due to its physical properties.
To further promote green hydrogen development, other options, such as deploying biogas as a feedstock or generating hydrogen through biophotolysis (which is the conversion of water and solar energy to hydrogen and oxygen using microalgae), have been explored. However, biogas is a scarce resource, and “In the future, many sectors will compete for it,” explains Magnolia Tovar, our Director of Technologies and Impact. This underlines whether using this energy source for hydrogen production makes sense in the long term.
Concerning biophotolysis, our Cleantech Analyst, Ingrid El Helou, explains: “So far, the process has only been carried out on a small scale and is dependent on the limited availability of microorganisms,” as the process’ Technology Readiness Level (TRL) is still in early stages.
To learn more about the future of alternative green hydrogen production methods, read the article (in German).
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