In light of the climate issue and the energy shift, hydrogen is gaining importance as a sustainable energy source. The fact that storage is frequently quite complicated and expensive is one of the main issues with this ecologically beneficial approach.
With a chemical storage facility that turns hydrogen combined with CO2 into methanol, the Tyrolean firm HyDepot hopes to change that. Austria Wirtschaftsservice provides financial support to the business that Christian Mair started (aws).
In Austria, the market for hydrogen will expand significantly as well. The federal government’s hydrogen policy calls for the construction of one gigawatt of electrolysis capacity in the nation by 2030 in order to produce green H2. The gas should then be used to substitute fossil fuels in energy-intensive industries (like steel manufacturing).
Christian Mair claims that the inspiration for HyDepot came from shipping. mainly due to space and expense constraints, the transportation of energy sources is exceedingly challenging, especially on ships. The founder has set out to find a scalable and affordable solution that would enable hydrogen—a sustainable energy source—easily transportable in all scenarios. The import and export of hydrogen should become much more desirable as a result.
To recover the hydrogen that has been transformed into methanol back into gaseous form, HyDepot has created a unique chemical technique. The startup claims that CO2 is still liquid during the subsequent feed-in procedure. The plant of the newly established corporation has pipe storage tanks into which the liquids are pumped and drained. In the end, the startup either installs the devices as enormous containers or as underground storage tubes.
The storage should be put to use in various places. Industrial businesses and fleets of vehicles ought to be able to store hydrogen locally and assemble local energy supplies during periods of cheap electricity prices. In order to be able to store hydrogen in this fashion and build up reserves for seasons with little sun or wind, energy suppliers, operators of solar and wind parks, and energy communities should all be able to. The HyDepot storage systems are also designed to be utilised for the transportation of energy across continental boundaries.
The chemical reaction’s carbon footprint can be minimised by sourcing the CO2 from industries. Yet the startup needs scale the technology before the chemical hydrogen storage method actually takes off. HyDepot plans to construct a first demonstration system in the future and is already in discussions with a number of possible partners. The first use for the storage systems is in industry.
