A Guide to Green Hydrogen: Production, Uses, and More
Green hydrogen is a clean energy source with zero emissions and is a strong solution for decarbonizing hard-to-abate sectors.
As governments, NGOs, and industries around the world continue to explore methods to reduce carbon emissions, green hydrogen has become increasingly prominent. The United Nations, the European Commission, and several countries have taken meaningful steps to support the nascent clean hydrogen industry, including major investments and legislative proposals.
Since hydrogen is the most abundant element in the universe, it makes sense to explore its potential. However, on Earth, hydrogen never occurs alone in nature. It’s always bonded with atoms of other elements, like oxygen (which forms water). This means pure hydrogen must be “manufactured” by splitting water molecules apart. And that takes a significant amount of power. Unfortunately, the vast majority of the hydrogen used today is produced using fossil fuels, which release greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide and methane.
Green hydrogen refers to hydrogen produced with electricity created from renewable sources like wind or solar power. The electricity splits water into its component atoms using a process called electrolysis. This method results in very low or zero carbon emissions. Green H2 can also be stored as either a gas or a liquid, although there must be ample safety measures in place due to its extremely flammable properties.
Other forms of hydrogen production use different pathways that are not as sustainable.
- Grey hydrogen is produced from methane, which consists of a carbon atom and four hydrogen atoms. Steam is used to separate the molecule into hydrogen and carbon dioxide—which of course is one of the main greenhouse gases. Coal is sometimes used to produce grey hydrogen, which results in even more emissions. This method is currently in use at the industrial scale.
- Blue hydrogen production is similar, but the CO2 is captured and stored. However, not all of the carbon can be captured, and there is wide variation in the effectiveness of long-term storage methods.
Uses for Green Hydrogen
Today, green hydrogen is used as a feedstock in refineries and in the chemical industry, mixed with other gases to power steel production, and sometimes combined with natural gas to reduce emissions in residential, commercial, and industrial heating systems. Green H2 can also be used in fuel cells to make electric vehicles even more sustainable.
Future applications of green hydrogen include replacing grey hydrogen in hard-to-abate sectors like steel and iron, where it is the lowest-cost and most scalable pathway to decarbonization. Drop-in fuels based on green hydrogen could be used in aviation and maritime shipping with minimal adjustments to engines and other equipment.
In the current economy, high costs, limited infrastructure, and low market demand mean that it will take some time for green hydrogen to scale to enable widespread use. However, according to some experts, that could be as soon as five to ten years.
Green Hydrogen Projects at World Energy
We are making massive investments in green hydrogen with World Energy GH2’s Project Nujio’qonik, Canada’s first commercial green hydrogen and ammonia producer. Located on the west coast of Newfoundland and Labrador, one of the best wind resource regions in the world, the facility will generate four gigawatts of renewable energy.
World Energy also has the ability to export green hydrogen through existing marine facilities and a harbor at the Port of Stephenville, as well as one of the shortest shipping routes between North America and Europe. Once finished, Project Nujio’qonik will produce about 280,000 tons of green hydrogen annually.
But our plans aren’t limited to producing and shipping green hydrogen. Although this initiative is in the very early stages, we are also exploring opportunities to produce green steel and iron on the island itself.
Green Hydrogen’s Promising Future
Getting green hydrogen to a scale where it will make a significant reduction in emissions worldwide will require investment and effort across the supply chain, industry support, policy and legislative action, and public-private partnerships. Through our operations in Canada, World Energy is helping to lead the expansion of this exciting sector of sustainable energy. Contact us to learn more about our clean hydrogen projects and goals.
