FAQ
HOW TO PRODUCE, STORE & USE HYDROGEN
faq
faq
The Hydrogen Production and Research Facility is Tasmania’s first green hydrogen production facility supporting research and training development for blue economy industries.
The facility features a highly innovative DC hydrogen microgrid, controlling one of Australia’s largest electrolysers, generating 100% renewable, green hydrogen from installed solar PV and verified renewable power from Tasmania’s electricity grid.
Since 2021, the Blue Economy CRC has been researching the viability of offshore hydrogen production at scale for two main purposes:
- To explore ways of supporting and decarbonising marine industries through research;
- To explore potential commercial opportunities to power local industries, both onshore and offshore;
The microgrid is able to emulate inputs from renewable sources and loads from industrial applications, simulating real-world conditions. This will help deliver highly accurate data needed to make industry-changing recommendations.
The research facility, situated at BOC’s Lutana site in Hobart, is now operational.
With net-zero emissions and decarbonisation key priorities in our energy shift, low-carbon energy sources such as hydrogen are gaining momentum in a bid to meet global sustainability goals. Hydrogen has the capacity to provide reliable clean green energy due to its zero carbon emissions when produced from renewable energy sources such as wind, wave and solar.
Hydrogen is an effective way to store clean energy and supply electricity to offshore sites beyond the reach of subsea power cables. Additionally, hydrogen’s flexibility of use means it can displace diesel and other fossil fuels in aquaculture and vessels. The oxygen produced in the process of making hydrogen provides an added benefit to aquaculture.
Green hydrogen, with very little embedded carbon-dioxide emission, is produced from green electricity by electrolysis. In the electrolyser, the supplied electric energy is used to split the water molecule (H2O) into its constituent hydrogen (H2) and oxygen (O2) at an energy cost of about 55 kWh of electricity per kilogram of hydrogen produced and consumes 20 litres of water per kg H2 produced.
DC microgrids are part of a modern trend towards DC power transmission and management. While grid electricity is AC (Alternating Current), renewable energy technologies are mostly “DC-inside” (Direct Current), including batteries, electrolysers and fuel cells. Technologies such as wind and water turbines and wave energy converters are effectively DC-inside because their output needs to be synchronised to the electricity grid via a DC stage.
This makes a DC microgrid the natural choice for managing energy systems in which multiple resources, such as solar, wind and wave power, are integrated with energy storage to smooth the uneven power availability of renewables.
A DC microgrid incorporates a rooftop photovoltaic array (26 kW), battery (114 kWh), Capstone C65 pure-hydrogen turbine electricity generator (65 kW) and a small hydrogen buffer storage holding 7.8 kg of hydrogen gas at 2 MPa pressure.
An electronic DC electricity generator will be programmed by computer to emulate a renewable energy source such as a wave energy converter, wind turbine or fuel cell. Together with a programmable load bank, it allows the microgrid to emulate many kinds of energy systems for research studying how microgrids can be employed to manage energy and hydrogen flows.
Green hydrogen is a clean energy source that’s made by splitting water using renewable electricity. It’s also known as renewable hydrogen. It differs from brown and blue hydrogen, which use fossil fuels or natural gas in their production.
Yes, hydrogen can be considered safe to store and use when handled properly, just as we have to store and use gasoline and natural gas properly. Proper storage and transportation require specialised tanks, leak detection systems, and strict safety standards to manage risks. As green hydrogen is a zero-carbon energy carrier, it has no environmental impact when produced and used.
The Hydrogen Production and Research Facility is owned by the Blue Economy CRC and situated at BOC Australia in Lutana, Hobart.
The hydrogen microgrid, microturbine and electrolyser infrastructure has been acquired from Optimal Group and financed by Macquarie Bank. BOC has partnered with the Blue Economy CRC to undertake the construction, commissioning and operation of the electrolyser and the associated compression, storage and transport aspects. pitt&sherry are the Project Advisors for this Project.
Research and development will be undertaken by several of the Blue Economy CRC’s partners and collaborators including Optimal Group, pitt&sherry, Tasmanian Government, University of Tasmania, Griffith University and Hydro Tasmania.
The Hydrogen Production and Research Facility also supports the research and training of several Higher Degrees by Research students. Blue Economy CRC is one of the pilot projects for the Australian Government’s Clean Energy Regulators Guarantee of Origin (GO) trial.
CONVERSATIONS
For enquiries on production, supply and R&D of green hydrogen contact, get in touch with us.
