CNTP Biogas to Low-Carbon H2 Conversion Project

Southern California Gas Company (SoCalGas)

Recipient

Monterey Park, CA

Recipient Location

25th

Senate District

49th

Assembly District

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Active

Project Status

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Project Update

The project team has successfully completed the system design for the scaled-up CNTP reactor. The team has also held two TAC meetings and is moving forward with fabrication of the CNTP reactor this year.

The Issue

In conventional steam methane reforming (SMR) for hydrogen production, heat is often delivered to reactors through combustion at high temperatures, which can result in emissions with negative environmental impacts. Commercial SMR technology also may have difficulty in being operated dynamically. Alternative hydrogen production methods such as electrolysis exist but are costly and therefore have not been widely adopted by industry. Thus, the hydrogen produced is not cost-competitive due to high capital expenses, complex balance of plant, and high cooling requirements. Electrically driven SMR can be powered by renewable electricity to minimize the carbon intensity of the hydrogen produced and avoid emissions, as well as demonstrate improved performance for applications requiring dynamic hydrogen production rates.

Project Innovation

This project will address key challenges associated with developing a low-carbon hydrogen production system that is also cost-effective and scalable. To do this, the project team will scale up an early-stage lab-scale catalytic non-thermal plasma (CNTP) reactor to a modular, bench-scale system powered by renewable electricity. The CNTP reactor would have the potential to cost-effectively convert biogas into low-carbon hydrogen and virtually eliminate the negative environmental impacts associated with traditional hydrogen production methods such as steam methane reforming (SMR). The technology breakthrough and innovation enables the SMR process to take place at substantially lower temperatures (~400 to 500°C) which is advantageous for lower carbon dioxide emissions, higher conversion to syngas, and higher hydrogen concentration in the intermediate syngas.

Project Goals

Expand feedstock range and production pathways through conversion of waste-derived biogas for low-carbon hydrogen fuel

Reduce energy consumption to improve SMR safety by operating at a significantly lower temperature than state of the art.

Lower costs of biogas-derived, low-carbon hydrogen to cost-competitive levels by optimizing the conversion process.

Generate data needed to support upscaling and commercialization of low-carbon hydrogen production technologies.

Project Benefits

This project is expected to provide ratepayer benefits of improved air quality, increased affordability, improved air quality, increased safety, and greater reliability. The technology being demonstrated in this project can address criteria pollutants that may be generated through conventional SMR. By driving the SMR process with electricity, combustion and any associated harmful emissions may be avoided. In addition to this technology's potential for a lower capital and operating cost when compared with conventional SMR, this project is expected to validate improved performance and process efficiency, potentially leading to lower-cost, more affordable hydrogen. The technology operates at a much lower temperature and can be turned on or off in seconds. Through its distributed nature, the hydrogen can be produced on-demand or to meet the needs of much smaller groups of consumers than served by large industrial facilities, and by being modular if one or more of these reactors fail, the overall system will still function and continue to produce hydrogen.