Researchers Operate Gas Turbine On Pure Hydrogen In World First

Researchers have developed the first-ever pure hydrogen gas turbines.

Companies are constantly looking to use more sustainable energy sources in their day-to-day operations and researchers as the University of Stavanger have been able to sustain their aim to generate electricity with zero emissions, which could potentially be a major landmark in helping develop a greener environment.

In mid-May 2022, the researchers worked in an electricity-producing micro gas plant in south-west Norway and used the gas turbine to supply hot water and heating for the laboratory buildings in the surrounding area.

The excess power was also supplied to energy provider Lyse's district heating and electricity grids, with all the energy produced by the gas turbine being efficiently used.

Lead researcher Professor Mohsen Assadi said: "We have set a world record in hydrogen combustion in micro gas turbines. No one has been able to produce at this level before.

"First, a certain effort is required to ensure that existing gas infrastructure can handle hydrogen instead of natural gas.

"Second, this is about technology for energy conversion, that is, the turbine technology itself.

"That is what we have focused on.

"We have contributed to technological adaptations of the fuel system and combustion chamber technology."

However, the potential issues surrounding hydrogen power still remain.

Sometimes burning hydrogen can still cause nitrogen dioxide pollution from burning fossil fuels such as diesel and fossil gas.

Hydrogen leakage could also still be a problem as hydrogen is a climate-heating gas, with a 100-year global warming potential that is about 11 times greater than carbon dioxide.

Prof Dick Derwent, the co-author of Air Quality and Climate Change: the Basics, who was not part of the government reports, said: “Hydrogen offers a possible role in a low-carbon economy where a natural gas distribution network is already available.

“Our work has shown official UK data underestimates methane emissions from the gas distribution network.

“They are getting worse not better with time.

“Neither government nor the gas industry in the UK have any idea what the natural gas leakage rate is, so why do we expect hydrogen leakage to be any different?

“It could well be that hydrogen distributed to the domestic sector could be problematic.”

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