Page 50 - Energize October 2022

VIEWS AND OPINION

as Latin America, the Middle East and Efforts should be made to develop them quickly at scale.
Northern Africa have the potential to Energy storage is another benefit, the relevance of which has been highlighted in
produce more clean hydrogen than the energy crisis caused by the war in Ukraine. Ammonia can be stored for as long as
needed. Other regions such as Japan, necessary, providing an important reserve of energy security. Cheap, large storage tanks
Korea or Hawaii will have insufficient remove the need to have production and consumption closely aligned.
renewable sources and will need to Continued research and development work opens additional uses for ammonia.
import hydrogen. On top of its role as a hydrogen carrier, ammonia can also be used as a fuel, especially
But transporting hydrogen over for shipping. Although it is less flammable, the energy density of ammonia is 1,5 times
long distance is not efficient and higher than liquid hydrogen. Collaborative efforts are underway to develop safe, reliable
does make much economic sense. and environmentally friendly marine engine technology. A European consortium aims to
The transportation of hydrogen in have a zero-emissions vessel running on ammonia fuel by 2025.
large quantities from one continent Power generation offers another application, where ammonia could be used as a
to another would require a whole fuel to replace coal, heavy fuel oil or diesel. Admittedly, this is not the most efficient way
new liquefaction and distribution to use ammonia and hydrogen. The only valid reason we would do this is to accelerate
infrastructure of ports, terminals the adoption of green hydrogen and take advantage of existing infrastructure.
and storage. This is where ammonia Japan is looking to develop a co-firing coal and ammonia fired power plant. Direct
provides a competitive solution. ammonia turbines using hydrogen as an accelerant to improve firing are currently
A recent report published by under development. Ammonia turbines could provide a more cost-effective net-zero
IRENA estimates that over half of the alternative to carbon capture or battery storage, especially for nations which currently
global trade in hydrogen will be in operate diesel turbines. Research in this field, to resolve the issue of NOx emissions,
the form of ammonia. This is because needs to be rapidly ramped up.
hydrogen is liquified at -252°C. It is And finally, green ammonia can be used as a building block to produce other
extremely reactive, requiring specific chemicals including fossil free fertilizers. Various projects are underway which consider
corrosion resistant materials which alternative ways of combining carbon and hydrogen to build plastics. These could
makes storage and transportation involve carbon capture and utilization to produce hydrocarbons rather than releasing
excessively expensive. Ammonia on CO 2 into the atmosphere.
the other hand can be condensed
to liquid at -33°C, making it much Green ammonia can be a cornerstone of a net zero future
easier to store and transport. The Green ammonia’s role in the energy transition is going to be huge. In summary,
infrastructure already exists, with renewable energy, hydrogen and ammonia will all work together as we transition
terminals at 120 ports around the away from fossil fuels to meet our net zero targets. But capacity needs to be
world. massively scaled-up to reduce costs and be more competitive. Once this is achieved,
Moreover, the process technology ammonia becomes the global renewable energy commodity, with the flexibility to be
to condense hydrogen and transform used as an energy carrier, as a fuel and as a building block for other chemicals. Just
it into ammonia, has a very high like crude oil today.
efficiency rate. Installing ammonia
crackers alongside centers of green About the author
hydrogen production and consumption Collin Hamilton is the chief operating officer (COO) and head of engineering at Verano
will support the development of a Energy. Under his leadership, the company is developing over 30 GW of hydrogen
hydrogen fuel economy. These crackers projects in Chile and Peru, one of the largest project pipelines in the world.
are still not commonly available, but
their theoretical efficiency is high. Send your comments to rogerl@nowmedia.co.za

energize | October 2022 | 50