HyDeploy reports success in UK hydrogen blending pilot

The HyDeploy consortium has said the first phase of its pilot project to blend hydrogen with natural gas was completed without any adverse affects on the system or customers' appliances.

The first phase of the HyDeploy project delivered natural gas blended with up to 20pc hydrogen to 100 homes and 30 university buildings at Keele University in Staffordshire, UK. The project was carried out for 18 months and ended in March of this year.

During this period, the project delivered more than 42,000m³ of hydrogen and saved more than 27t of carbon emissions, the consortium said.

This was achieved with minimal modifications to the current gas grid infrastructure and no changes to customers' household appliances, it said. Hydrogen was also delivered to larger commercial appliances such as industrial boilers with capacities of up to 600kW.

The hydrogen was generated using electrolysers provided by integrated hydrogen energy systems manufacturer ITM Power. Hydrogen was delivered at low pressure at ambient temperatures. There is no risk of embrittlement to pipelines at this level — it only becomes a risk at high temperatures or pressures, the company said.

If blending on a similar scale to Hydeploy were rolled out across the UK, the country could save up to 6mn t of CO2 annually, the consortium said. The UK's total carbon emissions were 455mn t in 2019, data from the energy ministry show.

Backed by Ofgem's Network Innovation Competition, the £7mn project is led by Cadent, Northern Gas Networks, Keele University, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), ITM Power and independent clean energy firm Progressive Energy.

Hydeploy last month launched a larger pilot project at Winlaton, near Gateshead in the UK. It will provide 688 homes, a school and some small businesses with a blend of up to 20pc hydrogen by volume on a network operated by Northern Gas Networks. The project will last for about 10 months.

Recently, the HSE also approved hydrogen blending of 1pc in biogas by Wales and West Utilities into their gas network in Swindon to supply 2,500 homes, reducing carbon emissions by 5,000 t/yr.

The UK at present has an exceptionally low blending limit of just 0.1pc. Up to 12pc is allowed in some parts of the Dutch grid and household appliances are designed to operate with a blend of up to 23pc hydrogen, Hydeploy said. Before the discovery of gas in the 1960s, ‘town gas' with a hydrogen content of up to 60pc by volume, created from coal, was used widely throughout the UK, the consortium said.

By Gandhari Nawalage