With an investment of $2.8 billion, Sinopec is implementing its plan to develop a massive green hydrogen project in Inner Mongolia in northern China.
The plan entails constructing an onshore wind farm, a hydrogen electrolysis plant that harnesses wind energy, and an export pipeline.
In the Zhongyuan Oilfield, Sinopec successfully handed over its first megawatt-scale renewable electricity electrolysis water hydrogen production demonstration plant. The project is currently past the building phase.
The project will promote the growth of the nation’s hydrogen energy industry by producing 1.12 tons of high-purity green hydrogen daily and using 25.2 million kWh of renewable electricity yearly, which is comparable to avoiding more than 14,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions.
The initiative uses a method of producing water-based hydrogen known as proton membrane electrolysis; this method is completely pollution-free. The most significant way of manufacturing green hydrogen at the moment is the electrolysis of water.
The “adaptability” of the hydrogen production process via proton membrane electrolysis as compared to the prevalent alkaline electrolysis technology The hydrogen manufacturing system may be shut down whenever necessary, which also makes it easier for local consumers to use extremely unstable renewable “green electricity” like wind and photovoltaic power generation. The proton exchange membrane electrolysis water hydrogen generation system is the project’s main piece of machinery, much like the engine is the main part of a car.
The project has the largest water hydrogen generation equipment using a proton exchange membrane in China. Pure water is used as the electrolyte, no chemicals are used during the electrolysis process, and it is safe and has a high current density. The project’s central device has a 2.5 MW electrolysis capacity. Its hydrogen production efficiency is better because it is China’s biggest single proton exchange membrane electrolysis water hydrogen production device.
The project will be outfitted with a 3.66 MW photovoltaic power station and a 9 MW wind power project in order to achieve “green energy” to “green hydrogen” without releasing carbon dioxide during the entire process. The two hydrogen production auxiliary projects generate roughly 25 million kWh of electricity each year. The building of photovoltaic supporting projects is currently almost finished.
Sinopec Zhongyuan Oilfield is in charge of the project, which is being collaboratively built by Qingdao Safety Engineering Research Institute, Guangzhou Engineering Co., Ltd., and Dalian Petrochemical Research Institute. A project operation working group has been established by Zhongyuan Oilfield to improve scientific overall planning and standardized construction. The project will be launched in a planned manner, with competent technical specialists stationed on-site to undertake on-site office work to guarantee high-quality project progress, provided that safety and environmental protection are guaranteed.
Sinopec has expedited industrial upgrading and energy transformation in recent years and has actively fostered the development of the entire hydrogen energy industry chain. It has achieved strides in a variety of disciplines, including hydrogen fuel cells, hydrogen refueling stations, hydrogen production technology, and hydrogen storage materials.
The company currently has 83 hydrogen refueling stations, making it the company with the most hydrogen refueling stations in the world. It has also begun building the largest photovoltaic green hydrogen project in the world, the Xinjiang Kuqa 20,000 tons/year green electricity hydrogen production demonstration project, and accelerated the promotion of a number of significant green hydrogen refining projects in Ordos, Ulanqab, Baotou, Fujian, and Zhejiang.
