A carbon-free, circular economy is required to decrease greenhouse gas emissions. A commonly named alternative to the carbon-based economy is the hydrogen economy. However, storing and transporting hydrogen is difficult. Therefore, the ammonia economy is proposed. Ammonia (NH3) is a carbon-free hydrogen carrier, which can mediate the hydrogen economy. Especially for long-term storage (above 1 day), ammonia is more economically stored than hydrogen. Transportation costs are greatly reduced by adopting a decentralized energy economy. Furthermore, political-economic factors influence energy prices less in a decentralized energy economy. With small-scale ammonia production gaining momentum, business models for the decentralized ammonia economy are…

The deployment of fuel cell electric vehicles is constrained by the paucity of hydrogen fueling stations and price, which is dominated by the costs of hydrogen storage and transportation. With more hydrogen per volume than liquid H2 and an extensive distribution infrastructure in place, ammonia is a promising vector for efficient hydrogen distribution. In this talk we describe the development of innovative catalytic membrane reactor (CMR) technology for the delivery of high purity H2 from ammonia cracking. The CMR integrates state-of-the art catalysts with thin metal membranes in an innovative design. Conventionally, the catalyst is supplied to CMRs in the…

While adsorption onto solids is a common separation process, absorption into solids is much less often used. The reason is that absorption is usually assumed ineffective because it includes very slow solute diffusion into the solid. An exception may be the separation of ammonia from nitrogen and hydrogen using ammines, especially at temperatures close to those used in ammonia synthesis. There, ammonia can be selectively absorbed by calcium chloride; nitrogen and hydrogen are not absorbed. The kinetics of ammonia release seem to be diffusion controlled. The kinetics of absorption are consistent with a first order reaction and diffusion in series,…

The presentation will address recent developments in the Solar Hydrogen Demonstration Project in which hydrogen, nitrogen and ammonia are made from solar power, water, and air; and used to fuel a modified John Deere farm tractor. In industrial applications very pure nitrogen is made by cryogenic distillation of air. Using Pressure Swing Absorption systems alone it is extremely difficult to achieve the required purity. An improved method was developed for making high purity nitrogen, for smaller systems. Will discuss how, when Oxygen contaminates the reactor catalyst, Hydrogen is used to purge the catalyst, and subsequently used as fuel.

Demands for safe secure supplies of potable water across the planet are increasing faster than can be provided by natural, ever depleting sources of fresh water. At the same time, world demand for electric power is also accelerating. Making H2 from Natural Gas is not an optimal or efficient process that is also un-economic at higher gas costs. An Integral Molten Salt Reactor (IMSR) is uniquely suited to provide the very high temperatures (585 °C+ working temps.) that are needed to both generate significant amounts of Hydrogen, Oxygen (a feed for industrial oxygen uses) and Electricity needed for advanced economies…

A massive influx of renewable energy is required in order to mitigate global warming. Although hydrogen is a renewable media, its storage and transportation in large quantity is difficult. Ammonia, however, is a hydrogen energy carrier, and its storage and transportation technology is already established. Although ammonia fuel combustion was studied in the 1960s in the USA, the development of an ammonia fuel gas turbine had been abandoned because combustion efficiency was unacceptably low [1]. Recent demand for hydrogen energy carrier revives the usage of ammonia fuel. The National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) in Japan, in…

In late years the discharge of the CO2 became the very big problem. The combustion of the fossil fuel in particular exhausts much CO2. Our project team (SIP) is intended to reduce CO2 by using NH3 (10%~30%) in substitution for heavy oil. The ‘SIP energy carriers’ was launched in 2014 (SIP: Strategic Innovation Promotion Program). Ammonia direct combustion team was formed. We conducted a co-research program with Osaka University in this project. We performed experiment of heavy oil – NH3 mixed combustion in the 10kW furnace. As the results, we obtained much experimental data. When we were combusted NH3 and…

Process technologies on energy conversion of renewable electricity into hydrogen energy carrier are significant to deploy long-term storage and long-distance transport of much more renewable inside and outside Japan. Ammonia is a potential hydrogen carrier that contains 17.6 wt% of hydrogen. Moreover, as an energy carrier, ammonia is thought to be a clean fuel as only water and nitrogen are produced on direct combustion. Many researchers and engineers consider that ammonia plants using hydrogen produced by solar electricity or wind electricity will be much smaller than those currently used [1]. There is an issue of low pressure condition for feed…

Catalytic conversion of dinitrogen (N2) into ammonia under ambient conditions represents one of the Holy Grails in catalysis and surface science. As a potential alternative to the Haber-Bosch process, electrochemical reduction of N2 to NH3 is attractive owing to its renewability and flexibility, as well as sustainability for producing and storing value-added chemicals from the abundant feedstock of water and nitrogen on earth. However, owing to the kinetically complex and energetically challenging N2 reduction reaction (NRR) process, NRR electrocatalysts with high catalytic activity and high selectivity are rare. In this contribution, as a proof-of-concept, we demonstrate that both the NH3…

Approximately half of the people on the planet are alive because of synthetically produced ammonia. However, due to the fossil fuels used in the current ammonia synthesis process, its production contributes a significant amount to the world’s greenhouse gas emissions. Haber-Bosch synthesis, which is the most widely used method of producing synthetic ammonia today, requires high temperatures (400-500 °C) and pressures (150-200 atm). This process is also energy intensive, consuming approximately 2% of worldwide energy. By taking an electrochemically-based approach to ammonia synthesis, those harsh conditions and emissions can be eliminated. However, current catalysts are not selective for the desired…

The University of North Dakota Energy and Environmental Research Center (EERC) and North Dakota State University (NDSU) have developed a low-pressure electrolytic ammonia (LPEA) production process. The LPEA process uses an electrochemical cell based on an innovative polymer–inorganic composite (PIC) high-temperature (300°C) gas-impermeable proton-exchange membrane conceptualized and partially developed by EERC and NDSU. Because of its operability at ambient pressure and quick start-up capability (versus traditional high-pressure Haber Bosch-based plants), the LPEA process offers compatibility with smaller-scale plants and intermittent operation, and a cost-effective means of monetizing (and storing) renewable energy as ammonia. EERC, NDSU, and Proton OnSite are embarking…

Ammonia is paid special attention as renewable energy carrier [1-3], because it offers advantages in generation, transportation and utilization. Haber-Bosch method is already established as ammonia generation method; large amount of ammonia is already used as fertilizer and chemical raw material. Ammonia can be liquefied at room temperature. Its transport and storage system are already established. Ammonia is cheaper to transport than hydrogen. Ammonia can be used as carbon-free fuel in internal combustion engines as alternative to conventional hydrocarbon fuels. However, it has different combustion characteristics. For example, the nitrogen atom contained in the ammonia molecule, causes high NOx emission…

Ammonia: Opportunities for Grid Support Mark Ruth, US Department of Energy, NREL.