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Young-Sam Oh Principal Investigator, Gas Research Institute, Korea Gas Corporation
Contribute to the entry into the hydrogen economy by complementing market niches in the transport sector.
Building a complex refueling station using an LNG satellite is a practical alternative
The role of existing energy sources is important to go to the hydrogen economy, and natural gas energy has significant significance as a clean energy source that serves as fuel for the hydrogen economy. In recent years, the demand for LNG in the natural gas market is increasing; In particular, in the field of transport, LNG vehicles complement a market niche that hydrogen electric vehicles cannot cope with, allowing the establishment of a stable and harmonious ecological transport infrastructure, as well as entry into the era of the hydrogen economy. will be.
Energy is necessary to sustain human life and the economy, and for this we have developed society using various sources of energy. New energy sources have been continuously developed in accordance with changing times and technological developments, and the main energy sources used have been continually replaced in accordance with the conditions of the times. The age of using wood as the main fuel has been transformed from the age of coal to the age of oil, and it can be said that oil is the main source of energy that sustains our economy and our lives.
With the recent development of shale gas and the prospect of huge shale gas potential, the energy use of gas is expected to increase in the future and consequently the gas-related industries are also expected to be revitalized. . However, even if gas power is activated in the future, gas power will not completely replace oil power, just as oil power did not completely replace coal power. This means that an energy source cannot provide all the energy we need.
The energy we need will be supplied through a mix of energy sources available at that time, and the relationship between energy sources is expected to be determined by factors such as economics and environmental efficiency. In the future, new and renewable energy is expected to expand further due to global environmental concerns. According to a recent report, global energy demand will increase by more than 1.5% per year in 2050 on average, and about 50% of total electricity will be made up of renewable energy sources such as solar and wind. Furthermore, nuclear fusion technology, which is the latest energy technology, is being developed on the basis of nuclear power technology. If this technology is completed, the energy problem suffered by mankind can be solved, but until the maximum development of the energy source is achieved, it is necessary to find a way to ensure efficient and environmentally friendly energy through a combination of energy sources that the company can use.
◆ Background and core of the hydrogen economy
Recently, the problem of environmental pollution and global warming caused by the use of energy have an important influence on the selection of energy sources. Consequently, it is emphasized that the energy we use must be environmentally friendly, and hydrogen energy is at the center. With the commercialization of fuel cell technology that can generate electricity using hydrogen, hydrogen, which has been considered only a process fuel or raw material, has come to be recognized as a clean energy source. In addition, as one of the measures to escape the influence of oil energy in the energy market that has been dominated by Big Oil, efforts to convert to a hydrogen economy through the commercialization of hydrogen energy continue. along with the development of new renewable energies.
The heart of the hydrogen economy is a fuel cell technology that can generate electricity using hydrogen. As fuel cell technology becomes commercialized, hydrogen electric vehicles using fuel cell technology are being developed, creating a new wind in the field of transportation. Since a Korean company commercialized the world’s first hydrogen electric vehicle in 2013, it has competitively started commercializing hydrogen electric vehicles in Japan, the United States and European countries. Since hydrogen electric vehicle technology is similar to electric vehicle technology, electric vehicles are expected to become an important means of transportation alongside hydrogen electric vehicles in the future.
As a result, China has proactively declared the exit of internal combustion engine cars and is pushing for a plan to be put in place to stop production of internal combustion engine cars by 2035 and sell only green cars, and Japan as well. it completely banned the sale of new gasoline cars in mid-2039. We are considering how to do it. In major European cities, the supply of hydrogen electric vehicles is expected to expand further in the future, such as the announcement that they will stop selling small internal-combustion engine vehicles from 2040 to phase out vehicles with a hydrogen engine. internal combustion.
◆ Conditions to accelerate the hydrogen economy
The hydrogen economy is beginning with a shift in transportation methods focused on hydrogen electric vehicles. Therefore, to accelerate the hydrogen economy, expanding the supply of hydrogen electric vehicles must take place on a continuous basis, and expanding the hydrogen charging infrastructure is critical to this. Therefore, green and inexpensive technology to produce hydrogen and a hydrogen supply logistics system that can effectively supply produced hydrogen to a hydrogen charging station will be the main points to achieve a hydrogen economy.
There are several types of methods for obtaining hydrogen, such as the reforming of natural gas, but as an ecological method of obtaining it, it can be said that it is a water electrolysis technology that uses electricity generated from renewable energy sources such as solar and the wind. Consequently, it is expected that new and renewable energy facilities will be expanded in the future to generate the electricity needed for hydrogen production.
However, new and renewable energy sources are intermittent energy and require a means to compensate for this, and the traditional method of producing hydrogen through natural gas reforming is typical. However, there is controversy that it is not an ecological method because carbon dioxide is generated during the reforming process, but it is considered the most economical and practical method at the current technological level. The method of hydrogen production by natural gas reforming is expected to ensure economic viability in the future, as natural gas prices are expected to stabilize due to shale gas development. Above all, it is necessary to support the hydrogen economy in conjunction with water electrolysis technology by minimizing or collecting carbon dioxide emission as a by-product during the hydrogen production process through natural gas reforming and operating in a friendly way with the environment. environment.
◆ The concept of hydrogen charging infrastructure using LNG
To build a hydrogen filling infrastructure by reforming natural gas, a network of pipelines for the supply of natural gas is required. In the case of urban areas, the construction of the charging infrastructure is not a big problem since the natural gas pipeline network is well equipped, but if it is necessary to install a hydrogen charging station in a rest area of the road or in a green area, a new natural gas pipeline must be built and the charging station cannot be built due to the economic burden. The situation is also expected.
In this case, building a hydrogen filling station using the LNG satellite base concept could be a great alternative. This method can be used as a feedstock for hydrogen production by storing and vaporizing LNG, and it can be operated as a complex charging station capable of loading LNG vehicles or CNG vehicles. Therefore, to economically secure the hydrogen charging infrastructure in a shorter time, the answer will be the construction of a complex hydrogen / LNG / CNG charging station using the LNG satellite base.
◆ Expansion of LNG vehicles in the hydrogen economy
The hydrogen fuel cell vehicle is a method of producing electricity from the fuel cell by installing a high pressure hydrogen container in the vehicle and driving a differential vehicle by turning an engine. In the case of using a high-pressure hydrogen storage method, since the hydrogen storage capacity is limited, a liquid hydrogen storage method is being investigated to increase the storage efficiency. This is a method to store cryogenic liquid hydrogen at -253 ° C in a double insulated container, and it is the same concept as a method to store cryogenic LNG at -163 ° C and the storage temperature is lower.
LNG vehicles use a method to supply LNG stored in double-insulated LNG storage tanks on LNG satellite bases to vehicles. If such charging technology is activated, hydrogen electric vehicles can use station technology. existing LNG cargo even if liquid hydrogen storage is selected. You can contribute to the expansion of the distribution. Therefore, the expansion of the supply of LNG vehicles ultimately contributes to the establishment of a hydrogen charging station infrastructure, enabling the activation of hydrogen electric vehicles and the hydrogen economy.
To revitalize the hydrogen economy, subsidies and related systems in the hydrogen sector have been reduced. Since it is practically difficult to enter the hydrogen economy through hydrogen energy alone, we hope that the domestic market related to LNG can also be activated by actively using LNG, an energy source that can support this.
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