Researchers in Qatar have proposed a solar-powered freeze desalination and electrolysis system for producing freshwater and green hydrogen, while BP says it has made a final investment decision for its 100 MW Lingen Green Hydrogen project in Germany.
Hamad Bin Khalifa University Researchers have proposed a self-contained solar-powered freeze desalination and electrolysis system to produce fresh water and green hydrogen from brackish groundwater in remote desert areas. They used a 10,456 m² air-conditioned system for ice storage, metal hydride canisters for hydrogen storage and a fuel cell to deal with fluctuations in solar radiation. They told pv magazine that the “system offers a unique integration of bifacial solar photovoltaics, brackish groundwater production, air-conditioned freeze desalination for ice storage, green hydrogen production, storage and fuel cells, thermally coupled to hydrogen storage tanks,” to support agricultural operations in hot desert environments. Researcher Nurettin Sezer said the system uses LaNi5 as the storage medium. They implemented bifacial modules with an efficiency of 23.6%, a PEM water electrolyzer with a voltaic and energetic efficiency of 74.5% and 58.8%, and a fuel cell with a voltaic and energetic efficiency of 64.6% and 62 .5%. they said in a recent one study in Desalination that the system generates 2.4 MWh/day of electricity, 52.8 m³/day of fresh water, 6.3 MWh/day of air conditioning and 177 kg/day of hydrogen for nighttime energy storage. During the day it achieved an energy efficiency of 17.8% and an exergy efficiency of 13.5%, and at night an energy efficiency of 56% and an exergy efficiency of 34.9%. Sezer said that while groundwater production, desalination and ice storage occur continuously, the electrolyzer only operates during the day and the fuel cell at night, with additional techno-economic studies still needed.
BP has made a final investment decision (FID) for the “Lingen Green Hydrogen” project in Lower Saxony, Germany, which will be supported by funding from the Major Project of Common European Interest (IPCEI) programme. It said The 100 MW plant, located next to the Lingen refinery, is expected to produce up to 11,000 tons of green hydrogen per year and will be directly connected to the hydrogen core network. It plans to make the facility the largest industrial-scale green hydrogen production plant to date and the first to fully own and operate it.
SunHydrogen has completed a demonstration of its green hydrogen technology on a 1 m² scale. In October 2024, it said its 100 cm² hydrogen modules, manufactured in partnership with CTF Solar, demonstrated 10.8% solar-to-hydrogen efficiency at Honda R&D facility in Japan. “With this 1 m² demonstration under our belt, we can begin the site selection process for larger pilot demonstrations,” said Syed Mubeen, SunHydrogen’s chief scientific officer.
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