GAS NETWORKS | HYDROGEN Hydrogen is being widely touted as a potential low carbon replacement for natural gas but, for it to succeed industry will need to address substantial challenges. Andy Pearson speaks to the pioneers in the sector to see what progress is being made O IN THE PIPELINE n 25 June 2019, the worlds first hydrogen-powered domestic boiler fired up in Rozenburg, the Netherlands. Developed by BDR Thermea Group, the highefficiency condensing boiler uses pure hydrogen as a fuel to provide heat to a residential building the first such reallife application. The trial is significant because, now that hydrogen is being promoted as a potential lowcarbon replacement for natural gas, it may soon become commonplace in the UK to help meet emissions commitments. The Climate Change Act requires the UK government to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to net zero by 2050. Heat currently accounts for around 50% of UK energy consumption and produces about one-third of its GHG emissions. If the government is to meet its obligations, it will need almost full decarbonisation of heat in buildings. Producing hydrogen in low carbon ways and using it for heat in buildings has the potential to be an important part of the next stage of the UKs energy transition. Hydrogen is already used, in both its gas and liquid forms, in the manufacture of chemicals, foods and electronics. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), however, current methods of production are responsible for annual CO2 emissions equivalent to those of Indonesia and the United Kingdom combined. This is because the most economical process for producing large quantities of hydrogen is by reforming natural gas through the application of heat. The reforming process produces large volumes of CO2, so hydrogens future as a fuel for large-scale deployment to homes and industry is dependent on the simultaneous deployment of carbon capture usage and storage (CCuS) infrastructure. An alternative to reforming gas with CCuS HYDROGEN-READY DEVICES A number of organisations have started the process of developing prototype domestic hydrogen appliances for use in demonstrations in 2020. These companies are all part of the Hy4Heat programmes innovation competition to demonstrate the safe use of hydrogen as a fuel for heating, hot water and cooking. As well as developing appliances that can be used with hydrogen gas, the workstream (work package 4) will be providing important evidence regarding safety, in-use emissions, and functionality. A draft report Understanding Industrial Appliances from Element Energy by Jacobs Consulting and Cardiff University has been presented to stakeholders at a workshop event at BEIS Conference Centre. This is a market research study into the variety of industrial appliances and the issues to be addressed. ERMs study into commercial appliances is under way, looking at the variety of commercial appliances in use and the issues to be addressed in their conversion or replacement with hydrogen appliances. ERM is keen to hear from commercial appliance manufacturers to assist with the research. Contact ERM at Hy4HeatWP5@erm.com is to produce hydrogen through electrolysis by using power generated from low carbon sources, such as renewables. In the report Transitioning to Hydrogen, the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) says: In the longer term, it may be possible for larger volumes of hydrogen to be produced from low carbon sources, but it is unlikely to be within a timescale to support a sizeable contribution to the UK meeting its 2050 greenhouse gas targets. Assuming hydrogen can be produced in large volumes without emitting large quantities of CO2, its appeal to the UK government is that it is an easy win. It could potentially be rolled out at scale to homes and businesses using a significant part of the existing natural gas pipework and infrastructure. This is not an unrealistic proposition; after all, the entire UK transitioned from town gas to natural gas between 1967 and 1977. According to the Committee on Climate Change (CCC), in its report Hydrogen in a low carbon economy, hydrogen has particular value as a low carbon replacement for natural gas and, potentially oil in applications where full electrification is very difficult, disruptive and/or expensive. The CCC sees hydrogen heat being used in combination with electric heat pumps for a low carbon heating solution. Our assessment is... that heat pumps, powered by increasingly low carbon electricity, offer the potential to provide heat efficiently most of the time, 26 October 2019 www.cibsejournal.com CIBSE Oct19 pp26-28, 30 Hydrogen.indd 26 20/09/2019 16:45