SHEC Labs plans Renewable Solar Hydrogen Pilot Plant
SHEC-Labs is pleased to announce that the company has recently been published in the Environmental Science and Engineering Magazine, May 2005 edition. This cover story was peer reviewed by a number of professional engineers and Ph.D. scientists. You can see the article on our web site at: www.shec-labs.com/press/articles/2005_May_ESE.php
(PRWEB) June 1, 2005 -- SHEC-Lab's prototype solar hydrogen generator has now
operated for approximately 1,200 hours with no noticeable coking or degradation
of the catalysts. Hydrogen production is near the theoretical maximum at
approximately 66% in the product gas stream with a 98.2% mol conversion of the
feed methane. The estimated maximum hydrogen production with the unit is
approximately 3,500 kg per year with minor modifications to the operating
pressure and reactor configuration and an increase in the solar mirror
area.
The next stage of development is anticipated to be a
commercial-scale demonstration at a landfill gas site using 40,000 kg per year
hydrogen production modules. This one project (a small-to-medium sized landfill
gas project) will prevent more than 1.6 million tons of carbon dioxide
equivalent (CO2e) from entering the atmosphere over the next twenty years and
will significantly improve local air quality and reduce smog. This one plant
would consist of 30 modules for a total annual production of 1.2 million kg of
hydrogen per year. (550 million cubic feet).
SHEC-Labs is currently in
the process of capitalizing to deploy its first commercial scale plant. Once
this plant is operational, we will be able to copy it a hundred or a thousand
times or more.
The next generation of solar hydrogen involves direct
water splitting with only water as the primary feed component. According to SHEC
scientists, six of the ten steps needed for this process are already integrated
into the current system.
About hydrogen production.
More than 95% of
hydrogen produced today is by the Steam Methane Reformation (SMR) of fossil
fuels such as oil, coal, and natural gas, a process that liberates massive
amounts of carbon dioxide and other pollutants to the atmosphere. The SMR
process provides a net energy loss of 30 to 35% when converting methane into
hydrogen since a great deal of fossil energy or electrical power is required to
operate the process. Hydrogen is also produced by electrolysis, a process that
uses electricity to convert water into hydrogen and oxygen. Although
electrolysis itself can be quite efficient in converting electricity into
hydrogen, the electricity used for electrolysis is often primarily generated
from fossil fuels. Therefore, traditional hydrogen production methods result in
a net increase in air pollution and are highly inefficient from an energy
conversion perspective.
Solar hydrogen production provides a net energy
gain when converting methane into hydrogen since the energy used to drive the
process is from the sun. Since SMR is not typically cost-effective at small to
moderate production levels, SHEC's technology is particularly attractive for
smaller and distributed hydrogen production. The environmental benefits of
generating hydrogen using renewable energy include significant greenhouse gas
reductions, and the reduction of smog precursors, acid gases, and mercury as a
result of reduced local need for oil, coal, and natural gas.
To add even
greater value, the process has the ability to use a renewable source of methane
and carbon dioxide, such as biogas from municipal wastewater plants and landfill
gas. Renewable methane generated from biomass results in no net increase of
carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere when the methane is converted into
hydrogen by SHEC's solar hydrogen generator.
Why produce hydrogen?
The
current market for hydrogen is approximately 42 billion kg per year and growing,
and is used primarily in ammonia fertilizer manufacturing, for hydrogenation in
the food and beverage industry, and in petroleum refining to reduce the sulfur
content of fossil fuels.
Hydrogen is also an energy carrier and is
recognized by many as the fuel of the future. When hydrogen is consumed by a
fuel cell, its only significant emissions are water and heat. A clean source of
hydrogen will lead to energy self-sufficiency and clean air and clean
water.
The U.S. will increase natural gas imports 700% during the next 20
years and will HAVE to import more than 25% of its gasoline by 2025.
SHEC
foresees it hydrogen production technologies as a way to fill some of this
demand.
About SHEC-Labs – (Solar Hydrogen Energy
Corporation)
SHEC-Labs a research and development company, is a world leader
in providing solutions for the production of clean, renewable energy for the
emerging hydrogen economy. SHEC-Labs, founded in 1996, has developed
technologies to more economically harness the power of the sun, reduce the
temperatures required for the disassociation of water, more economically produce
hydrogen from fossil fuels and the production of hydrogen from bio gas
sources.
Additional information about SHEC-Labs may be found online at www.shec-labs.com
For
additional information, contact:
Ray Fehr, V.P. Marketing
SHEC-Labs -
Solar Hydrogen Energy Corporation
Phone: (306) 244-0122
www.shec-labs.com
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Source : http://www.prweb.com/releases/2005/6/prweb246612.htm