Wärtsilä, in conjunction with WEC Energy Group, the Electric Power Research Institute, and Burns & McDonnell, has been hired to conduct hydrogen fuel tests at the A.J. Mihm power plant in Michigan, USA.
The initiative supports WEC’s goal of reducing CO2 emissions from its electric producing fleet by 60 percent by the end of 2025, by 80 percent by the end of 2030, and to be carbon neutral by the end of the 2050.
This will be one of the first instances in which hydrogen is tested to lower the carbon footprint of a Wartsila-delivered gas-fueled power station. The 55 MW plant now works with three natural gas-powered Wartsila 50SG engines.
The parties will test fuel mixes containing up to 25 percent hydrogen in combination with natural gas to demonstrate the plant’s capabilities to minimize greenhouse gas emissions. The Wärtsilä engines can function with this proportion of hydrogen-gas blend with minimal modification. Although Wärtsilä engines are capable of operating at even greater hydrogen-blend levels, these tests will be limited to the IEC/EN 60079-20-1-specified maximum of 25 vol percent hydrogen for natural gas systems.
“These hydrogen tests reinforce the viability of the internal combustion engine as a future-proof technology that plays a key role in decarbonising the power industry. We have long had a focus on creating solutions that enable zero-carbon power generation, and are excited to begin this hydrogen testing project in the USA as a natural next step in developing our products to meet customer needs for a decarbonised future. Our engines already have the flexibility for both balancing the input of renewables into the power system, and baseload generation with a continuously increasing range of fuels,” commented Jon Rodriguez, Director, Engine power plants, Wärtsilä North America.
One engine will be chosen for the test program, and it will continue to provide power to the grid during the duration. For certain levels of engine load, the fuel’s hydrogen content will be gradually increased to a maximum of 25 vol. percent. Throughout the testing, the engine’s performance will be measured. Wärtsilä has previously conducted successful engine tests at its testing facilities in Vaasa, Finland, and Bermeo, Spain, in order to determine the optimal engine characteristics for using hydrogen fuel.
Wärtsilä supplied WEC Energy Group with seven Wärtsilä 50SG gas engines for the F. D. Kuester power plant in Michigan, in addition to the A.J. Mihm power plant.
Wärtsilä already has engine generating sets successfully functioning on a natural gas and hydrogen combination in a newly constructed power plant at an offshore floating testbed in Singapore.
