Application of Liquid Hydrogen Carriers in Hydrogen Steelmaking

Joakim Andersson
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Joakim Andersson: Department of Chemical Engineering, Division of Energy Processes, KTH Royal Institute of Technology, SE-10044 Stockholm, Sweden

Energies, 2021, vol. 14, issue 5, 1-26

Abstract: Steelmaking is responsible for approximately one third of total industrial carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) emissions. Hydrogen (H 2 ) direct reduction (H-DR) may be a feasible route towards the decarbonization of primary steelmaking if H 2 is produced via electrolysis using fossil-free electricity. However, electrolysis is an electricity-intensive process. Therefore, it is preferable that H 2 is predominantly produced during times of low electricity prices, which is enabled by the storage of H 2 . This work compares the integration of H 2 storage in four liquid carriers, methanol (MeOH), formic acid (FA), ammonia (NH 3 ) and perhydro-dibenzyltoluene (H18-DBT), in H-DR processes. In contrast to conventional H 2 storage methods, these carriers allow for H 2 storage in liquid form at moderate overpressures, reducing the storage capacity cost. The main downside to liquid H 2 carriers is that thermochemical processes are necessary for both the storage and release processes, often with significant investment and operational costs. The carriers are compared using thermodynamic and economic data to estimate operational and capital costs in the H-DR context considering process integration options. It is concluded that the use of MeOH is promising compared to the other considered carriers. For large storage volumes, MeOH-based H 2 storage may also be an attractive option to the underground storage of compressed H 2 . The other considered liquid H 2 carriers suffer from large thermodynamic barriers for hydrogenation (FA) or dehydrogenation (NH 3 , H18-DBT) and higher investment costs. However, for the use of MeOH in an H-DR process to be practically feasible, questions regarding process flexibility and the optimal sourcing of CO 2 and heat must be answered.

Keywords: fossil-free steel; hydrogen storage; liquid hydrogen carriers; hydrogen direct reduction; industrial decarbonization (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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