NETL has released “Comparison of Commercial, State-of-the-Art, Fossil-Based Hydrogen Production Technologies,” which reports the levelized cost of hydrogen, in real 2018 dollars, as well as carbon dioxide-equivalent life cycle emissions (cradle-to-gate basis) of select hydrogen production plants, providing critical perspectives for researchers, regulators and policymakers as the nation transitions to a clean energy future.

This independent assessment compares the cost, performance and emissions profiles of hydrogen production plants that were selected to reflect the capabilities of current, commercial technologies within industrial-scale plant configurations. These technologies and associated plant configurations are representative of next-commercial offerings facing no fundamental research and development obstacles.

“The U.S. Department of Energy recognizes the potential of hydrogen as a versatile clean energy fuel, particularly for difficult-to-decarbonize segments of the economy. With this study, NETL sought to establish a comprehensive technoeconomic and lifecycle greenhouse gas assessment of competing state-of-the-art technologies, against which progress in advanced technology R&D may be compared,” NETL’s Robert Stevens said. 

Included in the report were analyses of three natural gas reforming configurations: (1) natural gas steam methane reforming without carbon capture and storage, (2) natural gas steam methane reforming with carbon capture and storage, and (3) autothermal reforming with carbon capture and storage. The NETL team also analyzed three gasification configurations: (1) coal gasification without carbon capture, (2) coal gasification with carbon capture and (3) coal plus biomass co-gasification with carbon capture — the latter targeting net-zero greenhouse gas emissions on a cradle to gate basis.

The carbon capture strategy employed for each case recovers greater than 90 percent of the carbon dioxide entering the plant boundary. High levels of capture are achieved by using a combination of water gas shift reactors and solvent-based carbon dioxide separation technologies.

“Our methodology was consistent with NETL’s 2019 revisions to the Quality Guidelines for Energy System Studies as well NETL’s ‘Cost and Performance Baseline for Fossil Energy Plants Volume 1: Bituminous Coal and Natural Gas to Electricity, Revision 4,’ which is the current revision” Stevens said. “This hydrogen production study will not only help inform stakeholders, but can also be used, from a research and development perspective, to assess goals and metrics and to provide a consistent basis for comparing developing technologies. We also identify several potential areas for R&D as potential pathways towards performance improvements and/or cost reductions beyond what current technologies provide.”

Read the full report here.

NETL is a U.S. Department of Energy national laboratory that drives innovation and delivers technological solutions for an environmentally sustainable and prosperous energy future. By leveraging its world-class talent and research facilities, NETL is ensuring affordable, abundant and reliable energy that drives a robust economy and national security, while developing technologies to manage carbon across the full life cycle, enabling environmental sustainability for all Americans.