A NEXT-GEN AMMONIA CRACKING: UNLOCKING HIGH H2 RECOVERY, ON DEMAND, LOW-CARBON HYDROGEN

Descrizione del progetto

Tecnologia dei reattori per il cracking sostenibile dell’ammoniaca

Sebbene l’idrogeno sia fondamentale per garantire un’economia a zero emissioni, è associato ad alti costi di trasporto e stoccaggio. L’ammoniaca, che immagazzina l’idrogeno in modo efficiente e dispone di una rete di distribuzione globale, può aiutare in tal senso; ciononostante, sebbene l’idrogeno possa essere convertito in ammoniaca e viceversa, le attuali tecnologie di cracking dell’ammoniaca sono inefficienti e dipendono da combustibili fossili. Il progetto H2SITE, finanziato dall’UE, mira a trasformare il cracking dell’ammoniaca attraverso la tecnologia dei reattori a membrana, secondo un sistema efficiente e indipendente da catalizzatori che integra la separazione e il cracking dell’ammoniaca a temperature più basse, riducendo in modo significativo i costi di capitale e quelli operativi. Il progetto svilupperà un prodotto minimo funzionante in grado di produrre una tonnellata di ammoniaca al giorno nel porto di Anversa, consentendo la scalabilità e l’adattamento per l’uso marittimo e altre applicazioni.

Obiettivo

Context – The role of Ammonia as an Enabler of the Hydrogen Economy
Hydrogen is crucial for transitioning to a net-zero economy, especially for hard-to-decarbonize industries and the maritime sector. However, its transportation and storage pose significant challenges, adding up to 300% to its production cost . Ammonia, with its high hydrogen storage capacity and existing global distribution infrastructure, offers a promising solution for hydrogen on demand.

The problem – Ammonia cracking is not optimized
Hydrogen can be converted to ammonia and back again by conversion and cracking processes. While conversion processes are optimized, current ammonia cracking technologies are inefficient, costly, and heavily reliant on fossil fuels, making them unsuitable for widespread adoption.

Solution – Optimized, scalable, autonomous, low GHG, low cost, on-demand hydrogen
Our project at H2SITE aims to revolutionize ammonia cracking with our novel membrane reactor technology. This technology integrates ammonia separation in a single step at lower temperatures, reducing both CAPEX and OPEX. It is catalyst agnostic, modular, and can be integrated with an ammonia burner, making it highly efficient and scalable. By producing just 0.5 gCO2eq/MJ (post-EIC) compared to 25 gCO2eq/MJ from conventional processes, while our current level stands at 2.7 gCO2eq/MJ, our solution achieves at least 95% GHG reduction compared to natural gas-based alternatives, with the potential for zero emissions.

EIC Project – Bringing Ammonia Cracking to Industrial and Maritime Applications
We are currently at TRL6 and need support from the EIC to develop and demonstrate a 1 ton per day MVP in the Port of Antwerp. This will enable us to scale up our technology, and adapt it for the maritime segment and other applications, representing a €77Bn market opportunity.