According to the U.S.
Department of Energy, the major challenge to hydrogen production is cost. To
compete as a transportation fuel, hydrogen must be comparable to conventional
fuels and technologies on a per-mile basis. For fuel cell electric vehicles to
be competitive, the total untaxed, delivered, and dispensed cost of hydrogen
needs to be less than $4/gge. A gge, or gasoline gallon equivalent, is the
amount of fuel that has the same amount of energy as a gallon of gasoline. One
kilogram of hydrogen is equivalent to one gallon of gasoline on an energy
basis.
Pacific Northwest Hydrogen Hub
In October 2023, the U.S. Department of Energy selected the Pacific Northwest Hydrogen Association's PNWH2 Hub for award negotiations as one of the federal Infrastructure Investment & Jobs Act
Regional Clean Hydrogen Hubs following a competitive nationwide process. The PNWH2 Hub is eligible to receive up to $1 billion in federal funding over
four DOE-defined development phases spanning nine years, with $20 million allocated for Phase 1. DOE will evaluate the hub’s activities and deliver go/no-go decisions at each phase.
Producing Hydrogen
Pure hydrogen can be
produced using a variety of sources, including fossil fuels such as coal and
natural gas, or renewable sources such as biomass, wind, solar, geothermal, and
water. Currently, about 95 percent of hydrogen in the United States is made
from natural gas for use in petroleum processing and fertilizer production.
Hydrogen Storage
Hydrogen storage for
large-scale use has been a challenge due to hydrogen’s low-energy content per
volume. Hydrogen can be stored as a compressed
hydrogen gas in high-pressure tanks, as cryogenic
liquid hydrogen in insulated tanks, as a compound within other materials,
or on the surface of other materials. Liquid hydrogen has a higher energy
density per volume than hydrogen gas but is costly to produce due to the energy
needed for cooling.
One
future storage concept discussed in Oregon is a possible hydrogen hub. A
hydrogen hub would use hydroelectric or wind power to synthesize ammonia, a
hydrogen-rich compound, to take advantage of excess energy that would otherwise
be lost (for instance, during spring run-off when energy demand is low, but
hydroelectric generation is high). During peak power demand, the ammonia would
be burned to produce electricity with water vapor and nitrogen gas as
byproducts.
Fuel Cells
A fuel cell uses oxygen and
hydrogen to create electricity through a chemical process instead of
combustion. The fuel input may be pure hydrogen or a hydrogen-rich compound
such as methanol, ethanol, or other hydrocarbons. Fuel cells that use pure
hydrogen as the fuel emit only heat and water as byproducts. Fuel cells are
adaptable to scale and can be used in a variety of applications, including
utility-sized power plants, back-up generators, powering portable
battery-powered devices (e.g., laptop computer), and vehicles. Cost and
durability are the primary challenges for fuel cell adoption, although other
technical challenges exist based on the type of technology and its intended
application.
Learn about hydrogen fuel cell vehicles in our 2020 Biennial Energy Report.
Distributing Hydrogen
Hydrogen is currently
transported by pipeline, in high-pressure tube trailers, or as liquefied
hydrogen. Currently, hydrogen is primarily produced near the location where it
is used, as a large scale infrastructure for delivery does not exist. Due to
gaseous hydrogen’s low-energy density per volume, transport using tube trailers
is typically cost effective over distances less than 200 miles from the point
of production. Hydrogen can also be transported in chemical carriers, such as
ethanol, for easier transport to be converted at the site of use.