Hydrogen powerGovernments plan to use blue fossil-fuel hydrogen along with green version raises concern, state campaignersSun 22 Aug 2021 14.15 BSTOpting for hydrogen that is used fossil fuels instead of eco-friendly electricity could create approximately 8m tonnes of carbon emissions every year by 2050, according to an analysis of government data.The figures reveal that the usage of fossil-fuel hydrogen, or “blue hydrogen”, would develop the very same carbon emissions each year that more than a million gas cars and trucks would produce, compared with utilizing zero-carbon “green hydrogen”. Ministers plan to use both green and blue hydrogen to change fossil gas in factories, refineries and heating, however brand-new figures reveal that an over-reliance on blue hydrogen would still lead to millions of tonnes of carbon emissions getting in the atmosphere every year.Blue hydrogen is drawn out from fossil gas in a process that requires carbon capture innovation to trap emissions– however this method still fails to record in between 5% and 15% of the CO2. Carbon emissions are likewise launched when the fossil gas is drawn out from oil and gas fields.Using blue hydrogen exclusively to change fossil gas would result in between 6m and 8m tonnes of co2 emissions every year from the late 2020s, or the equivalent of running an average of 1.5 m more fossil-fuel vehicles on the roadway every year by 2050. If the government utilized zero-carbon green hydrogen to satisfy a 3rd of the UKs forecast hydrogen demand, blue hydrogen would develop the same emissions as around 1m vehicles running on the UKs roadways each year.The analysis, undertaken on behalf of the Guardian by Friends of the Earth Scotland, was based upon government information published recently in a long-awaited report on the future of the UKs hydrogen economy.The strategy sets out a “twin track” technique to supporting hydrogen production, however it stopped working to suggest a balance between green and blue hydrogen. This has actually raised concerns among environment groups that an over-reliance on blue hydrogen could lock the UK into years of North Sea gas production, fossil-fuel imports and countless tonnes of carbon emissions.Richard Dixon, the director of Friends of the Earth Scotland, stated the federal governments assistance for the significant oil companies behind strategies for blue hydrogen tasks, including BP and the Norwegian state oil giant Equinor, would allow them to “extend fossil-fuel production forever”. A spokesperson for the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, which examined the analysis, said investing in both green and blue hydrogen would “allow us to kickstart a whole market from scratch that creates tens of thousands of jobs and unlocks billions of pounds worth of personal financial investment”. Quick GuideWhat are the hydrogen options?Hydrogen impactHydrogen is considered an important tool in the UK federal governments strategy to cut the nations emissions to net absolutely no by 2050. The clean-burning gas could be used to change fossil gas in refineries and factories, or as a fuel for heavy transport such as shipping, without producing greenhouse gases.Although hydrogen itself is a clean fuel, the procedure of producing hydrogen can be incredibly polluting. Many of the worlds hydrogen is produced from fossil gas, and releases millions of lots of carbon emissions every year. There are 3 primary kinds of hydrogen: Grey hydrogenAbout 98% of the hydrogen utilized today is understood as “grey hydrogen”. It is drawn out from the methane found in fossil gas, utilizing a process referred to as steam methane reforming, and releases co2 emissions into the atmosphere where it adds to international heating. It is exceptionally destructive to the environment.Blue hydrogenThis “low carbon” option to grey hydrogen utilizes carbon capture innovation to trap between 85% to 95% of the harmful emissions created by hydrogen production, which could then be transferred in pipelines to underground storage facilities such as disused subsea gas caverns under the North Sea. Blue hydrogen is not a net absolutely no fuel due to the fact that it requires fossil fuel production, which causes emissions and releases as much as 15% of the emissions as grey hydrogen.Green hydrogenGreen hydrogen is made by splitting water particles utilizing an electrolyser powered by renewable electrical energy. The only by-product is oxygen which can be securely launched into the air. Eco-friendly energy developers think huge offshore wind farms might be used to power green hydrogen production, especially over night when electricity need is low.ShowHide”Achieving the scale we need would be more difficult if we simply utilized green hydrogen,” the representative added.The governments main environment advisers at the Committee on Climate Change (CCC) have backed the concept of a “blue hydrogen bridge” through the 2030s for areas of the UK economy which would have a hard time to operate on electrical power, while the UK utilizes its renewable electrical energy to satisfy the growing demand for electric vehicles and heating.But David Joffe, the head of carbon spending plans at the CCC, cautioned that the government needs to begin to check the percentage of hydrogen produced from nonrenewable fuel sources in favour of green hydrogen by the late 2030s to meet its legally binding climate targets.”Blue hydrogen is not a fantastic option, and we dont embrace it unreservedly,” he told the Guardian.But relying on blue hydrogen in the short-term, while the UK constructs its green hydrogen abilities, would still play an important role to assist prevent countless tonnes of carbon from being released into the atmosphere in an important years for dealing with emissions, he said.He included that the federal governments hydrogen strategy was “less useful than it otherwise could have been” due to the fact that officials had actually failed to set out a balance between green and blue hydrogen.”We do believe that its important for the government to offer some assistance later this year, certainly on the balance till 2030. Its one of numerous spaces in the strategy which make it hard to judge,” he stated. bottomRight goalExceededMarkerPercentage. We will be in touch to advise you to contribute. Watch out for a message in your inbox in October 2021. Please call us if you have any questions about contributing.
Hydrogen powerGovernments strategy to use blue fossil-fuel hydrogen along with green variation raises concern, state campaignersSun 22 Aug 2021 14.15 BSTOpting for hydrogen that is made using fossil fuels rather than renewable electrical power could develop up to 8m tonnes of carbon emissions every year by 2050, according to an analysis of federal government data.The figures reveal that the use of fossil-fuel hydrogen, or “blue hydrogen”, would produce the exact same carbon emissions each year that more than a million gas cars would produce, compared with utilizing zero-carbon “green hydrogen”. Ministers plan to use both blue and green hydrogen to change fossil gas in factories, refineries and heating, however new figures show that an over-reliance on blue hydrogen would still lead to millions of tonnes of carbon emissions getting in the atmosphere every year.Blue hydrogen is drawn out from fossil gas in a process that needs carbon capture technology to trap emissions– but this method still fails to capture in between 5% and 15% of the CO2. If the federal government utilized zero-carbon green hydrogen to meet a 3rd of the UKs projection hydrogen need, blue hydrogen would develop the very same emissions as around 1m automobiles running on the UKs roadways each year.The analysis, undertaken on behalf of the Guardian by Friends of the Earth Scotland, was based on federal government data published last week in a long-awaited report on the future of the UKs hydrogen economy.The strategy sets out a “twin track” technique to supporting hydrogen production, but it failed to recommend a balance between green and blue hydrogen. Sustainable energy developers believe giant overseas wind farms might be used to power green hydrogen production, especially over night when electrical power demand is low.ShowHide”Achieving the scale we require would be more challenging if we simply utilized green hydrogen,” the spokesperson added.The governments official environment advisors at the Committee on Climate Change (CCC) have backed the idea of a “blue hydrogen bridge” through the 2030s for locations of the UK economy which would struggle to run on electricity, while the UK uses its sustainable electricity to satisfy the growing demand for electric lorries and heating.But David Joffe, the head of carbon budgets at the CCC, cautioned that the government needs to start to rein in the percentage of hydrogen produced from fossil fuels in favour of green hydrogen by the late 2030s to meet its legally binding climate targets.”Blue hydrogen is not an amazing option, and we dont embrace it unreservedly,” he told the Guardian.But relying on blue hydrogen in the short term, while the UK develops its green hydrogen capabilities, would still play a crucial function to help prevent millions of tonnes of carbon from being released into the environment in a crucial years for taking on emissions, he said.He included that the governments hydrogen strategy was “less valuable than it otherwise could have been” since authorities had actually failed to set out a balance between green and blue hydrogen.