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Steam Heat Used to Full scale Hydrogen Plant - 9/25/08

Hydrogen may one day replace fossil fuels to power vehicles without emitting carbon dioxide. The Challenge is producing it cost effectively and not using fossil fuels to create it.

The team at Idaho National Laboratory (INL) has found a greener process by splitting steam into hydrogen and oxygen using high temperature electrolysis. The hydrogen plant will be coupled with a nuclear plant. High temperature electrolysis and part of the plant’s electricity will be used to generate hydrogen. Hydrogen is then produced without using fossil fuels.

The INL team has completed their first test of the laboratory scale high temperature electrolysis hydrogen plant. They are waiting on the reactor to go into full capacity later this year. Lessons learned from this laboratory scale plant will help them design a full scale plant capable of producing two and a half kilograms of hydrogen each second. A kilogram of hydrogen contains the same amount of energy as a gallon of gasoline.

When heated, water breaks apart more easily making the electrolyzing process more efficient. The team uses fuel cell like materials to produce hydrogen. In each cell voltage pulls oxygen ions through a ceramic electrolyte separating the steam into hydrogen and oxygen.

One of the biggest challenges they have is finding solid oxide cells that can resisted corrosion. They need cells that will last at least two years to make the hydrogen plant cost effective.

Back to the Hydrogen Index