Hydrogen energy: Pain Points and Opportunities - The "Energy Revolution" research series

Developing hydrogen energy: an important starting point for zero carbon

Hydrogen energy refers to the energy released by hydrogen in the process of physical and chemical changes. It is an ideal secondary energy source and is considered to be a major strategic direction of global energy transformation. Its industrial chain is divided into three links: upstream hydrogen production, midstream storage and transportation, and downstream terminal consumption, involving a wide range of industrial fields.

From the production side, the advantage of hydrogen energy is that it is convenient to make, store and transport, and relatively environmentally friendly. First, hydrogen energy sources are wide, in addition to fossil fuel hydrogen production, but also can use wind power, solar energy and other forms of electrolytic water hydrogen production. Second, storage and transportation is relatively convenient, hydrogen can be gas, liquid storage in high-pressure tanks, can also be solid-state storage in hydrogen storage materials, relative to the grid transport, large fluctuations, loss of wind energy, solar energy and other advantages. Third, it is relatively green and environmental protection, the combustion product of hydrogen energy is water, and zero carbon emissions can be achieved under the premise of using renewable energy to produce hydrogen, while traditional fossil energy through hydrogen production, rather than direct power generation, its carbon emission intensity will also decrease.

From the application side, the advantage of hydrogen energy is high efficiency and wide application. Compared with other common energy sources, the calorific value of hydrogen combustion is higher, reaching 142KJ/g, which is much higher than other energy sources, so as to improve efficiency. Second, hydrogen is widely used, it can be used as fuel cell power generation, used in automobiles, ships and aviation, and can also be used as a fuel gas or chemical raw material to enter production, and it can also be doped with hydrogen in natural gas pipelines and applied to building heating. At present, in the energy that has been applied on a large scale, only oil can have a variety of functions such as heating, power supply, transportation fuel, and hydrogen is undoubtedly a high-quality energy with a variety of energy characteristics and suitable for a variety of scenarios.

Since the Paris Agreement set a long-term goal of "holding the global average temperature rise below 2 ° C over the pre-industrial period, and striving to limit the temperature rise to 1.5 ° C", many countries have declared to achieve carbon neutrality within a certain period of time. The development of hydrogen energy to promote carbon reduction and optimize the energy structure is one of the important measures to achieve zero carbon emissions.

At present, many countries around the world have introduced the top-level design and strategic route of hydrogen energy. According to the report of the International Hydrogen Council, 31 countries have put forward hydrogen-related strategies at the national level, and these countries account for 73% of global GDP. Overall, the national hydrogen energy strategy of overseas countries, the primary goal is to decarbonize as soon as possible, followed by increasing energy types, among which Australia, Russia, Canada and other countries have the strategic goal of expanding hydrogen energy exports. In the key technical areas, it is mainly focused on reducing the price of hydrogen, developing hydrogen fuel transportation and decarbonizing industry. It is worth noting that due to the differences in resource endowments of countries, there are also differences in the development of hydrogen energy routes, such as Russia, which is rich in natural gas resources, to develop blue hydrogen with natural gas as raw materials, and the unusual green hydrogen as the main technical direction.

We expect that the top-level design of hydrogen energy at the national strategic level may be introduced in the near future. In order to achieve the "double carbon" goal, hydrogen energy will be strongly supported by national policies. We expect that the plan will set a timetable and roadmap for the development of hydrogen-related industries, and set quantitative targets. In terms of key areas of promotion, renewable energy hydrogen production, hydrogen energy storage and transportation, hydrogen fuel cells, and related infrastructure construction may be mentioned.

Current situation of hydrogen energy in China: great potential, many difficulties

China's energy structure is still dominated by fossil fuels, and there is an urgent need to strengthen the development of clean energy. From the perspective of primary energy consumption structure, the proportion of fossil energy such as coal, oil and natural gas in China is as high as 84.1%, and the proportion of non-fossil energy is only 15.9%, which is still a certain distance from the requirements of 20% in 2025, and is far from the target of 80% in 2060. From the perspective of the final energy consumption structure, the proportion of fossil energy is still as high as 61.9%, and the proportion of electric energy is only 26.9%, and from the perspective of power generation, high carbon emissions of thermal power is still the main power generation mode in China, accounting for as high as 70.7%. As a green, clean and efficient secondary energy source, hydrogen energy can optimize the existing energy structure, effectively reduce carbon dioxide emissions, improve environmental problems, and help achieve the "double carbon" goal.