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Europe Stores Electricity in Gas Pipes
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/europe-stores-electricity-in-gas-pipes/Europe Stores Electricity in Gas Pipes
Converting excess wind and solar power into hydrogen can extend renewable energy’s reach
By Peter Fairley on April 1, 2019
Last month Denmark’s biggest energy firm, Ørsted, said wind farms it is proposing for the North Sea will convert some of their excess power into gas. Electricity flowing in from offshore will feed on-shore electrolysis plants that split water to produce clean-burning hydrogen, with oxygen as a by-product. That would supply a new set of customers who need energy, but not as electricity. And it would take some strain off of Europe’s power grid as it grapples with an ever-increasing share of hard-to-handle renewable power.
Turning clean electricity into energetic gases such as hydrogen or methane is an old idea that is making a comeback as renewable power generation surges. That is because gases can be stockpiled within the natural gas distribution system to cover times of weak winds and sunlight. They can also provide concentrated energy to replace fossil fuels for vehicles and industries. Although many U.S. energy experts argue that this “power-to-gas” vision may be prohibitively expensive, some of Europe’s biggest industrial firms are buying in to the idea.
European power equipment manufacturers, anticipating a wave of renewable hydrogen projects such as Ørsted’s, vowed in January that all of their gas-fired turbines will be certified by next year to run on up to 20 percent hydrogen, which burns faster than methane-rich natural gas. The natural gas distributors, meanwhile, have said they will use hydrogen to help them fully de-carbonize Europe’s gas supplies by 2050.
Converting power to gas is picking up steam in Europe because the region has more consistent and aggressive climate policies. Most U.S. states have goals to clean up some fraction of their electricity supply; coal- and gas-fired plants contribute a little more than a quarter of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions. In contrast, European countries are counting on carbon reductions of 80 percent or more by midcentury—reductions that will require an economywide switch to low-carbon energy.
…
Converting excess wind and solar power into hydrogen can extend renewable energy’s reach
By Peter Fairley on April 1, 2019
Last month Denmark’s biggest energy firm, Ørsted, said wind farms it is proposing for the North Sea will convert some of their excess power into gas. Electricity flowing in from offshore will feed on-shore electrolysis plants that split water to produce clean-burning hydrogen, with oxygen as a by-product. That would supply a new set of customers who need energy, but not as electricity. And it would take some strain off of Europe’s power grid as it grapples with an ever-increasing share of hard-to-handle renewable power.
Turning clean electricity into energetic gases such as hydrogen or methane is an old idea that is making a comeback as renewable power generation surges. That is because gases can be stockpiled within the natural gas distribution system to cover times of weak winds and sunlight. They can also provide concentrated energy to replace fossil fuels for vehicles and industries. Although many U.S. energy experts argue that this “power-to-gas” vision may be prohibitively expensive, some of Europe’s biggest industrial firms are buying in to the idea.
European power equipment manufacturers, anticipating a wave of renewable hydrogen projects such as Ørsted’s, vowed in January that all of their gas-fired turbines will be certified by next year to run on up to 20 percent hydrogen, which burns faster than methane-rich natural gas. The natural gas distributors, meanwhile, have said they will use hydrogen to help them fully de-carbonize Europe’s gas supplies by 2050.
Converting power to gas is picking up steam in Europe because the region has more consistent and aggressive climate policies. Most U.S. states have goals to clean up some fraction of their electricity supply; coal- and gas-fired plants contribute a little more than a quarter of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions. In contrast, European countries are counting on carbon reductions of 80 percent or more by midcentury—reductions that will require an economywide switch to low-carbon energy.
…
5 replies
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= new reply since forum marked as read
https://www.ocregister.com/2019/04/27/the-real-renewable-energy-storage-solution/
The real renewable energy storage solution
By Jack Brouwer | PUBLISHED: April 27, 2019 at 1:35 pm | UPDATED: April 27, 2019 at 1:35 pm
Right here at UC Irvine, we’re doing a little science experiment that could make a big difference for countries around the globe as they look for ways to replace fossil fuels and stop climate change. This experiment is focused on how to store extra solar energy.
Just as in all of California, on sunny days our campus solar panels make more electricity than we can use. But we need that extra electricity at night or during rainy periods when the sun isn’t shining. What’s the problem, you say — can’t you just charge up some batteries during those sunny days and draw from them when it’s dark or rainy? That might be possible for one campus, but statewide, and certainly globally, traditional batteries can never be the main solution for renewable energy storage.
That’s why I’m concerned when I hear claims that the way to a zero-carbon future is to “electrify everything” and support the state’s energy needs with only sunshine, wind and batteries. Far too many people have been misled into believing that this is the entire solution — and many of our state agencies and legislators have bought in. This could take our state down a risky path of relying only on electric power without alternate forms of clean energy, and with an electric grid that can never become fully clean.
Solar, wind and batteries can only partly solve the world’s (or even just California’s) climate change and air quality problems. Here’s why:
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Dr. Jack Brouwer, then- associate director of the National Fuel Cell Research Center explains how UC Irvine pumping hydrogen into the existing natural gas pipelines on Wednesday, November 2, 2016. (Photo by Nick Agro, Orange County Register/SCNG)
By Jack Brouwer | PUBLISHED: April 27, 2019 at 1:35 pm | UPDATED: April 27, 2019 at 1:35 pm
Right here at UC Irvine, we’re doing a little science experiment that could make a big difference for countries around the globe as they look for ways to replace fossil fuels and stop climate change. This experiment is focused on how to store extra solar energy.
Just as in all of California, on sunny days our campus solar panels make more electricity than we can use. But we need that extra electricity at night or during rainy periods when the sun isn’t shining. What’s the problem, you say — can’t you just charge up some batteries during those sunny days and draw from them when it’s dark or rainy? That might be possible for one campus, but statewide, and certainly globally, traditional batteries can never be the main solution for renewable energy storage.
That’s why I’m concerned when I hear claims that the way to a zero-carbon future is to “electrify everything” and support the state’s energy needs with only sunshine, wind and batteries. Far too many people have been misled into believing that this is the entire solution — and many of our state agencies and legislators have bought in. This could take our state down a risky path of relying only on electric power without alternate forms of clean energy, and with an electric grid that can never become fully clean.
Solar, wind and batteries can only partly solve the world’s (or even just California’s) climate change and air quality problems. Here’s why:
…
