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Petrochemical businesses in the United States are continuing to invest in research and development in order to prepare for the hydrogen economy.
According to a study released on the 2nd by the KOTRA Dallas Office of the United States, US petrochemical firms are increasing their investment to boost production in anticipation of the global hydrogen market’s rapid expansion.
In April, Chevron, a large American oil refinery, announced a strategic partnership with Toyota, a Japanese automaker, to create a hydrogen business. The two businesses have set strategic goals that include assessing existing and future market demand for fuel cell electric cars and investigating supply options, as well as identifying collaborative R&D potential.
In July, Chevron and Cummins engine maker inked a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to develop hydrogen infrastructure and fuel cell cars. Raven SR, a Wyoming-based business, announced an investment in August to develop a plant for sustainable synthetic fuels and green hydrogen created from modular trash.
In addition, in response to the need for energy conversion, around 20 energy firms, including Dominion Energy and Sempra Energy, are evaluating the feasibility of hydrogen generation using existing infrastructure and hydrogen delivery utilizing natural gas pipelines.
Dominion Energy is experimenting with a natural gas supply that contains 5% hydrogen. Sempra Energy is undertaking a test to examine how combining natural gas and hydrogen affects pipelines and other infrastructure.
The US Department of Energy (DOE) awarded Philips 66 a US$3 million (about 4 billion won) grant to create high-performance solid oxide fuel cells. It will collaborate with Georgia Tech to show that a low-cost, high-efficiency, reversible solid oxide fuel cell device for hydrogen and power generation is commercially viable.
“US firms are pushing hydrogen as an eco-friendly option,” a KOTRA official stated, “but the high price remains a hurdle, therefore attempts to decrease the price are continuing.”
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