Nothing but water: Hydrogen fuel cell unit to provide renewable power to Honolulu port

[nationalize the fed]

Phys.org August 28, 2015

A new chapter in clean energy is starting in Hawaii. At Young Brothers Ltd.'s Port of Honolulu facility, Sandia National Laboratories is leading the Maritime Hydrogen Fuel Cell project to test a hydrogen-fuel-cell-powered generator as an alternative to conventional diesel generators.


“We are pleased to help expand this clean energy technology to new applications,” said Young Brothers, Ltd., President Glenn Hong. Young Brothers is hosting a project led by Sandia National Laboratories to test a hydrogen-fuel-cell-powered generator as an alternative to diesel in powering refrigerated containers. Credit: David Murphy)

On Friday, the project kickoff is being marked with a ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, Young Brothers President Glenn Hong and Sandia California Vice President Marianne Walck.

"Today, we take another big step in transforming our nation to a clean energy economy," said Schatz. "The fuel cell technology being deployed today will one day mean less carbon pollution in our ports and on the high seas. The great work from all the partners involved, especially Young Brothers, is helping lead the way to a cleaner, more energy-efficient future."...snip

Hydrogen more efficient than diesel

..."At the point of use, hydrogen fuel cells produce nothing but water—zero pollutant emissions and no greenhouse gases," said Joe Pratt, Sandia's project lead. "This technology could enable major commercial ports and marine vessels to lessen their environmental impacts." ...snip...

Read more at: http://phys.org/news/2015-08-hydrogen-fuel-cell-renewable-power.html

In Hawaii- and around the world- H2 is #1

Wasserstoff ?????ό?? hidrógeno водород hidrojen idrogeno hydrogène väte מימן waterstof

[Statistical]

1. It depends on where you get the hydrogen from.

Sure the fuel cell only outputs water but where do you get the H2? Today essentially all hydrogen comes from reforming natural gas which is not low carbon.

[mopinko]

2. nobody is using solar?

why?

[Statistical]

3. $$$$

Hydrogen from electrolysis is about 3x the cost of hydrogen from reforming natural gas. That might change eventually if solar gets cheap enough. If you have very high heat like nuclear reactor or concentrating thermal solar you can actually break down water into H2 & O2 by thermolysis which is much more efficient but I don't think anyone has done that on a commercial level. It takes very high (700C to 1200C) heat which means using something like molten salt instead of water for heat transfer

Still we should keep researching hydrogen fuel cells because we aren't going to fly on battery operated passenger jets or ship products by battery operated cargo ships. Someday those could use hydrogen.

[kristopher]

4. Advanced biofuels are more likely to fill those niches.

Algae can provide a direct low-carbon substitute for diesel with no need to replace existing machinery. Production can also be integrated into existing farming as a way of dealing with animal wastes.

[Statistical]

5. It certainly is possible ...

but so far at least the total lifecycle ghg for biofuels has been pretty abysmal and also very water intensive. IPCC seems to be changing course somewhat on biofuels.

[kristopher]

7. "total lifecycle ghg for biofuels has been pretty abysmal"

That's news to me. I hope you noticed the word "advanced" was included. But even ethanol is better than H2 from conventional sources. When you factor in the energy requirements you get the reason it hasn't gone anywhere in spite of massive support from the entrenched energy players. It's similar to nuclear in that respect and has largely the same players pushing it.

ETA - Water intensive? Which technology are you talking about. Sounds a lot like you are doing more smearing than discussing.

[OKIsItJustMe]

10. It may be helpful to read the Sandia National Labs piece from last year

Last edited Sat Aug 29, 2015, 12:37 PM - Edit history (1)

Sandia did the upfront research, and they’re managing the project.

http://crf.sandia.gov/portable-hydrogen-fuel-cell-unit-to-provide-green-sustainable-power-to-honolulu-port/

[font face=Serif][font size=5]Portable Hydrogen Fuel Cell Unit to Provide Green, Sustainable Power to Honolulu Port[/font]

on April 3, 2014 By Patti Koning

[font size=3]Clean hydrogen power that’s expected to lower emissions and reduce energy consumption will be coming to the Port of Honolulu in 2015 after the completion of a new fuel cell technology demonstration, one that could lead to a commercial technology for ports worldwide.

The work comes on the heels of last year’s study and analysis that confirmed the viability of hydrogen fuel cells to provide auxiliary power to docked or anchored ships. Hydrogen researchers at Sandia National Laboratories have joined with several partners in the follow-up project, which will result in a portable, self-contained hydrogen fuel cell unit that can float on a barge, sit on a dock or be transported to wherever it’s needed to provide electrical power.

…

“We compared the efficiencies of their diesel engines versus fuel cells, studied the energy efficiencies at various power levels and estimated the savings and reductions in emissions that would be realized if they were to convert to a fuel cell-powered operation,” said Pratt. Analyses have shown that when generators are frequently producing less than maximum power, such as in the Hawaii application, the efficiency advantage of fuel cells compared to the combustion engine increases, he said.

…

In addition to its project management role, Sandia is providing technical expertise in hydrogen and fuel cells, particularly in the areas of codes and standards, system design, safety systems, data collection and analysis of both operations and the business case for deployment.

…[/font][/font]

Read much more at their Maritime Hydrogen Fuel Cell Project site.

[OKIsItJustMe]

6. On the other hand

Reforming natural gas, to produce hydrogen for use in a fuel cell is more efficient than burning the natural gas to generate electricity.

[kristopher]

8. Perhaps you could put some numbers to that claim

Bloom is about 10-15% less efficient than a combined cycle plant as far as I know.

[OKIsItJustMe]

9. Actually, Bloom specifically claims otherwise

http://www.bloomenergy.com/clean-energy/

[font face=Serif][font size=5]Clean Energy: Bloom Energy delivers Better Electrons™[/font]

…

[font size=4]Low CO₂ Emissions[/font]

[font size=3]Bloom Energy Servers convert fuel into delivered electricity at the highest level of efficiency amongst commercially available technologies. Greater efficiency means less fuel consumed to produce the same output of electricity, and that lower fuel consumption corresponds to fewer CO₂ emissions. Even when compared to advanced centralized combined cycle gas turbine power plants equipped with the best available control technology (BACT) — the US EPA's benchmark — Bloom delivers a lower CO₂ footprint due to higher electricity efficiency.[/font]

…[/font]

[nationalize the fed]

11. From the article

Hickam Air Force Base in Honolulu is supplying the hydrogen to power the fuel cell. The hydrogen is produced by electrolysis, the process of splitting water into hydrogen and oxygen, using electricity supplied by Hickam's solar-powered electrical grid.

Today essentially all hydrogen comes from reforming natural gas

All cookies were once made with lard. Now, almost none are. Just because something has been done a certain way in the past does not mean that is the way it must be done in the future.

Related: Panasonic's new Solar Panels MAKE HYDROGEN

The future home is where the hydrogen power generator is
Nikkei Asian Review | Teruaki Hirasawa | July 11, 2015



OSAKA -- Panasonic is developing a household fuel cell system using hydrogen that can power homes and vehicles. It is doing so in part to help the government create a "hydrogen society."

The company aims to have a hydrogen generation system market ready by around 2030 to replace solar batteries.

"We are committed to developing technology that can play a part in the household hydrogen-based infrastructure," Yoshiyuki Miyabe, Panasonic's senior managing director in charge of technology, said July 3 in Tokyo.

Water is made of hydrogen and oxygen. The conventional electrolysis method for splitting water costs money as it uses electricity. Hydrogen does not produce carbon dioxide when it is burned, making it a clean source of energy. But when hydrogen is produced from water by using electricity, it is not as clean...snip more-
http://asia.nikkei.com/Tech-Science/Tech/The-future-home-is-where-the-hydrogen-power-generator-is

[Statistical]

15. Thanks for pointing out my mistake.

I said essentially as in almost all. Good to see there are some exceptions and this is one of them.

[Binkie The Clown]

12. Nothing but water...IF...

If you push the generation of hydrogen outside your field of view. Then it certainly appears that hydrogen is non-polluting. But all you've done is move the pollution to some place where you don't have to look at it.

[nationalize the fed]

13. See post #11 above

this is NOT brain surgery.

Hickam Air Force Base in Honolulu is supplying the hydrogen to power the fuel cell. The hydrogen is produced by electrolysis, the process of splitting water into hydrogen and oxygen, using electricity supplied by Hickam's solar-powered electrical grid.

I really don't understand what about this concept is so hard to grasp.

[Binkie The Clown]

14. Does it scale up to replace oil? No. Plus...

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/energy/2014/11/141111-solar-panel-manufacturing-sustainability-ranking/

How Green Are Those Solar Panels, Really?

Fabricating the panels requires caustic chemicals such as sodium hydroxide and hydrofluoric acid, and the process uses water as well as electricity, the production of which emits greenhouse gases. It also creates waste. These problems could undercut solar's ability to fight climate change and reduce environmental toxics.