Centrica Business Solutions Delivers Significant Energy Savings For The Pirbright Institute
The title of this post, is the same as that of this press release from Centrica.
These three paragraphs outline the project.
Centrica Business Solutions has partnered with The Pirbright Institute to deliver sustainable on-site technology that will help reduce its net energy use by more than 10 per cent by 2026.
Centrica installed a new Combined Heat and Power Plant (CHP), which will provide around 75 per cent of Pirbright’s future power needs. The CHP uses natural gas to generate electricity and hot water at the site, with its exhaust gases also used to feed into a heat recovery generator to provide steam. It means CHP technology is over twice as efficient as conventional power sources and can lower organisational reliance on the Grid.
The Institute, which is dedicated to the study of infectious diseases of farm animals, has already devised an energy plan which has introduced energy-saving upgrades across the Surrey campus, including the closure of energy-inefficient buildings, the introduction of efficient lighting and a programme to raise staff awareness of energy consumption.
The system is still powered by natural gas.
Liverpool University
I was an undergraduate at Liverpool University and according to this page on their web site, which is entitled Sustainability, they seem to be following a similar route to the Pirbright Institute.
With a heading of Energy And Carbon, this is the mission statement.
The University’s ambition is to be a climate-resilient campus, that has minimal negative and maximum positive environmental impact, achieving net zero carbon by 2035. We monitor energy and carbon across the entire University as part of the Climate plan and in support of the Sustainability Strategy and Strategy2026 net zero carbon targets.
One section of the page has a title of The Green Recovery with Clarke Energy at the University’s Energy Centre, where this is said.
The University of Liverpool generates up to 90% of its campuses electricity needs on site in the Energy Centre, through CHP. Clarke Energy help the University operate CHP in the most efficient way, keeping us on track with technological developments, such as how the CHP can be adapted to take different fuel blends.
Although there is a nod to different fuel blends, I suspect that the system, like that at Pirbright, is currently powered by natural gas.
Clarke Energy, is headquartered in Liverpool and is a division of Kohler.
Centrica And HiiROC
CHP systems are becoming more common and like these two systems, they are generally powered by natural gas.
In Plans Submitted For Hydrogen Pilot Plant At Humber Power Station, I describe how Hull-based start-up; HiiROC are going to help fuel a gas-fired power station with a hydrogen blend.
This is a paragraph from this article on Business Live, which describes Centrica’s relationship with HiiROC.
It comes as the owner of British Gas has also increased its shareholding in the three-year-old business to five per cent. Last November it was one of several investors to pump £28 million into HiiRoc alongside Melrose Industries, HydrogenOne, Cemex, Hyundai and Kia, who joined existing strategic investors Wintershall Dea and VNG.
HiiROC’s system can take any hydrocarbon gas from biomethane, through chemical plant waste gas to natural gas and convert it to hydrogen and carbon black.
Carbon black has a large number of manufacturing uses and can also be used in agriculture to improve soil.
It looks to me, that HiiROC’s systems will be a simple way to convert natural gas-powered CHPs to zero carbon.
Centrica’s Rough Storage Facility Pumps Gas Into Grid To Meet Increased Demand
The title of this post, is the same as that of this press release from Centrica.
This is the sub-heading.
The UK’s largest gas storage facility, Rough, has released stored gas into the grid to help the UK both manage higher heating demand during the current cold weather and keep prices down. This is the first time Rough has released gas this winter.
These three paragraphs describe how Centrica are using Rough and how they will use it in the future.
This year, Centrica has filled Rough with the equivalent of 18 LNG tankers. Rough provides enough energy to heat over 3 million homes, every day, all winter, keeping families warm and bills down.
Rough is the UK’s largest gas storage facility. It stopped storing gas in 2017 but was re-opened for gas storage in October 2022, and its capacity was doubled in the summer of 2023. The facility, which is 18 miles off the coast of East Yorkshire, now provides half of the UK’s total gas storage.
Centrica’s long-term ambition is to turn the Rough gas field into the largest long duration low carbon energy storage facility in the world, capable of storing both natural gas and hydrogen.
It does seem that Centrica have handled the Rough facility well.
But I do feel that Centrica are playing a bigger game.
- In Lhyfe And Centrica To Develop Offshore Renewable Green Hydrogen In The UK, I talk about how Centrica will produce hydrogen offshore.
- Would this hydrogen be conveniently produced near to Rough?
- Rough allow Centrica to buy gas at a low price and sell high. Rough could be a neat little profit centre?
- I suspect lessons learned at Rough, could be applied to other gas storage facilities?
- Centrica have taken a substantial stke in HiiROC, who are developing a new way of producing green hydrogen.
- In Centrica Partners With Hull-Based HiiRoc For Hydrogen Fuel Switch Trial At Humber Power Plant, I talk about how Centrica are helping HiiROC with full scale trials.
I certainly like what they’re doing.
Centrica Signs UK Biomethane Agreement With Yorkshire Water And SGN Commercial Services
The title of this post, is the same as that of this news item from Centrica.
These three paragraphs outline the story.
Yorkshire Water, an essential water and wastewater services provider for the Yorkshire Region, and Centrica Energy Trading, have today announced signing a 15-year agreement to offtake biomethane production and manage shipping, trading, and balancing of production from two plants developed by SGN Commercial Services.
SGN, a leading manager of natural gas and green gas distribution networks in Scotland and the south of England will design, develop and operate the biomethane gas-to-grid sites, which once operational, will produce approximately 125GWh of biomethane annually — enough to heat more than 10,000 UK households.
Biogas will be produced as a by-product of Yorkshire Water’s sewage wastewater treatment processes, where Centrica will offtake production from the site and subsequently manage shipping, trading, and balancing of the green gas. Biomethane will be injected into the UK grid to displace natural gas, providing cleaner and more resilient gas supplies that reduces dependency on outside energy imports.
SGN Commercial Services are a wholly-owned subsidiary of SGN.
This mission statement is on the home page of their web site.
Our safety-first culture provides bespoke commercial solutions and green gas services to our clients, allowing them to better meet their business needs today and in the future.
In an energy market which is prioritising de-carbonisation and net-zero solutions, we can help navigate a clear pathway for your business to achieve its goals both responsibly and cost-effectively.
It looks to me, that SGN Commercial Services will design, develop and operate the biomethane gas-to-grid sites, so that the biomethane from the sewage works can be fed into Centrica’s main UK gas grid.
You could argue, that every sewage works and landfill producing large amounts of methane, should have one of these connections.
What would be the repercussions if SGN Commercial Services were asked to connect all these sites to the gas grid?
- How much gas would be collected?
- How many houses could be heated?
- How much of the greenhouse gas; methane would not be released into the atmosphere?
This is a cunning plan, that is worthy of Baldrick at his best.
Over a period of time, domestic gas consumption will fall as houses are fitted with heat pumps and other green methods for heating.
Could this mean, that as time goes on, more and more of our domestic consumption of gas is satisfied by net-zero gas from waste sources?
Does HiiROC Fit In Anywhere?
This article on UKTN is entitled Meet HiiROC, The Startup Making Low-Cost Hydrogen Free From Emissions.
There is a section, which is called How Does HiiROC Work?, where this is said.
The company’s hydrogen generation units use feedstock gases such as methane, flare gas or biomethane at high pressure and with a very high electrical field between an anode and cathode.
This dissembles the tightly bound molecules into hydrogen and carbon atoms, with both coming out as a plasma (like a gas). The carbon is instantly cooled and solidified as pure carbon, which means no carbon dioxide is formed, in a quenching process to stop it from reforming back into the input gas.
The end product is hydrogen and carbon black, a material used in rubber tires, inks and paint.
It’s a material that has wide industrial use, but current production methods create large amounts of CO2 and other environmentally harmful biproducts.
“Our process is emission-free,” says HiiROC co-founder and CEO Tim Davies. “Because all you’ve got is hydrogen and solid carbon – they are the two products.”
For every kilogram of hydrogen produced using HiiROC units, you’re left with three kilograms of carbon black. This, however, is a potentially valuable, clean solid by-product and does not contribute to global warming unlike processes that create carbon dioxide gas.
Read the full article on UKTN, as it is full of very interesting information.
It says this about distributing hydrogen to a number of industries.
Lots of industries need hydrogen, which means HiiROC has a broad range of potential customers.
Their smallest machine can produce up to 100 kilograms of hydrogen per day. But due to their modular design and small size, they can easily be stacked up to increase output, making them scalable for businesses requiring large-scale industrial hydrogen production.
So at one end of the scale, it could support a hydrogen filling station, or a farmer wanting to use hydrogen to go carbon-free and at the other, it could support an energy intensive process like hydrogen steelmaking. All that is needed is a suitable hydrocarbon gas feed.
Last night on the BBC, a program called What They Really Mean For You, was about electric cars.
The program flagged up a shortage of graphite for making the batteries for electric cars.
So seeing that HiiROC hydrogen systems, could be producing tonnes of carbon black could this be converted into battery-grade graphite?
Google says yes!
This article on Sciencing is entitled How To Turn Carbon Into Graphite.
Conclusion
As Centrica own a substantial portion of HiiROC and are lending the company a gas-fired power station for full scale trials, I believe that Centrica is up to something, that will have three strong benefits for the British public.
- They will be able to keep their gas boilers for longer.
- Hydrogen supplied by HiiROC’s devices will provide hydrogen in the required quantities to where it is needed.
- The carbon black produced by HiiROC’s devices, when turned into graphite will be a valuable feedstock for giga-factories making batteries.
Engineering is the science of the possible, whereas politics is dreams of the impossible.
Did I See The UK’s Hydrogen-Powered Future In Hull Today?
I went from London to Hull today on Hull Trains for £50.80 return (with my Senior Railcard) to see SSE’s presentation for their Aldbrough Pathfinder Hydrogen project, which will feature a 35 MW green hydrogen electrolyser and 320 GWh of hydrogen storage in the thick layers of salt under East Yorkshire.
- Green electricity would come mainly from the part-SSE owned 8 GW Dogger Bank wind farm complex.
- According to their web site, Meld Energy are planning a 100 MW electrolyser, which would produce 13,400 tonnes of hydrogen per year.
Every large helps!
- It should be noted that the thick layers of salt stretch all the way to Germany, and as drilling and storage technology improves, the amount of hydrogen storage available will increase.
- I was also impressed by the ambition, competence and enthusiasm, of the SSE engineers that I met.
- As has been pointed out, HiiROC, who have backing from Centrica, Hyundai, Kia and others, are also in Hull!
I believe, that I saw our hydrogen-powered future in Hull today!
We need more hydrogen mega-projects like these! Perhaps in Aberdeen, Clydeside, Freeport East, Isle of Grain, Merseyside, Milford Haven and Teesside?
Plans Submitted For Hydrogen Pilot Plant At Humber Power Station
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on Business Live.
This is the sub-heading.
HiiRoc and Centrica partnership at Brigg moves forward as consent sought.
These two paragraphs complete the original article.
Plans for a hydrogen pilot plant to sit alongside Centrica’s Brigg Power Station have been submitted to North Lincolnshire Council.
The low carbon fuel is set to be blended with gas at the peaking plant, in a tie-up between the energy giant and green-tech start up HiiRoc, in which it has invested. The well-backed Hull-based firm is pioneering a new production method, and was named as KPMG’s Global Tech Innovator for 2022.
I have very high hopes for HiiROC, who in addition to Centrica, have Hyundai and Kia as investors.
Endorsement from KPMG is surely positive.
Meet HiiROC, The Startup Making Low-Cost Hydrogen Free From Emissions
The title of this post, is the same as that of this article on UKTN.
This article explains the technology behind, what I feel is one of the most promising start-ups, I’ve seen.
It is certainly a must read.
This paragraph explains how they plan to lease the machines.
It plans to bring in revenue by leasing its machines to companies charging on the output of hydrogen and carbon.
That is almost how we sold the Artemis project management software, I wrote over forty years ago.
- Our bank manager liked it, as we were leasing to companies like BP, Chevron and Shell.
- His bosses liked it, as leasing companies don’t normally have that dodgy word; innovation.
- Our in-house accountant liked it, as we had an easy to predict cash flow.
- Our customers liked it, as all they had to provide was a 13-amp socket and paper for the printer.
It was a model that served us well.
Conclusion
The more I learn of HiiROC, the more I like the company.
Centrica Business Solutions Begins Work On 20MW Hydrogen-Ready Peaker In Redditch
The title of this post, is the same as that as this news item from Centrica Business Systems.
This is the sub-heading.
Centrica Business Solutions has started work on a 20MW hydrogen-ready gas-fired peaking plant in Worcestershire, as it continues to expand its portfolio of energy assets.
These three paragraphs outline the project.
Centrica has purchased a previously decommissioned power plant in Redditch, and is set to install eight UK assembled containerised engines to burn natural gas.
Expected to be fully operational later this year, the peaking power plant will run only when there is high or peak demand for electricity, or when generation from renewables is low. The Redditch project will have the capacity to power the equivalent of 2,000 homes for a full day when required, helping to maintain stability and reliability on the grid.
The engines will also be capable of burning a blend of natural gas and hydrogen, futureproofing the site and helping the UK transition towards a decarbonised energy system.
- The original power station had Rolls-Royce generators.
- Cummins and Rolls-Royce mtu and possibly other companies can probably supply the dual fuel generators.
- Cummins have received UK Government funding to develop hydrogen-powered internal combustion engines.
- This press release from Cummins, which is entitled Dawn Of A New Chapter From Darlington, gives more details on Cummins’ plans for the Darlington factory and hydrogen.
Given that Cummins manufactured sixty-six thousand engines in Darlington in 2021 and it is stated that these containerised engines will be assembled in the UK, I feel, that these engines may be from Cummins.
Centrica’s Plans
This paragraph in the Centrica Business Systems news item, outlines their plans.
The Redditch peaking plant is part of Centrica’s plans to deliver around 1GW of flexible energy assets, that includes the redevelopment of several legacy-owned power stations, including the transformation of the former Brigg Power Station in Lincolnshire into a battery storage asset and the first plant in the UK to be part fuelled by hydrogen.
As Redditch power station is only 20 MW, Centrica could be thinking of around fifty assets of a similar size.
Brigg Power Station
The Wikipedia entry for Brigg Power station gives these details of the station.
- The station was built in 1993.
- It is a combined cycle gas turbine power station.
- The primary fuel is natural gas, but it can also run on diesel.
- It has a nameplate capacity of 240 MW.
Brigg power station is also to be used as a test site for hydrogen firing.
This news item from Centrica is entitled Centrica And HiiROC To Inject Hydrogen At Brigg Gas-Fired Power Station In UK First Project.
These paragraphs from the news item explains the process.
The 49MW gas fired plant at Brigg is designed to meet demand during peak times or when generation from renewables is low, typically operating for less than three hours a day. Mixing hydrogen in with natural gas reduces the overall carbon intensity.
It’s anticipated that during the trial, getting underway in Q3 2023, no more than three per cent of the gas mix could be hydrogen, increasing to 20% incrementally after the project. Longer term, the vision is to move towards 100% hydrogen and to deploy similar technology across all gas-fired peaking plant.
HiiROC’s proprietary technology converts biomethane, flare gas or natural gas into clean hydrogen and carbon black, through an innovative Thermal Plasma Electrolysis process. This results in a low carbon, or potentially negative carbon, ‘emerald hydrogen’.
Because the byproduct comes in the form of a valuable, solid, pure carbon it can be easily captured and used in applications ranging from tyres, rubbers and toners, and in new use cases like building materials and even as a soil enhancer.
It looks to me, that HiiROC are using an updated version of a process called pyrolysis, which is fully and well-described in this Wikipedia entry. This is the first paragraph.
The pyrolysis (or devolatilization) process is the thermal decomposition of materials at elevated temperatures, often in an inert atmosphere. It involves a change of chemical composition. The word is coined from the Greek-derived elements pyro “fire”, “heat”, “fever” and lysis “separating”.
Pyrolysis is more common than you think and is even used in cooking to do things like caramelise onions. This is a video of a chef giving a demonstration of caramelising onions.
On an industrial scale, pyrolysis is used to make coke and charcoal.
I came across pyrolysis in my first job after graduating, when I worked at ICI Runcorn.
ICI were trying to make acetylene in a process plant they had bought from BASF. Ethylene was burned in an atmosphere, that didn’t have much oxygen and then quenched in naphtha. This should have produced acetylene , but all it produced was tonnes of black soot, that it spread all over Runcorn.
I shared an office with a guy, who was using a purpose-built instrument to measure acetylene in the off-gas from the burners.
When he discovered that the gas could be in explosive limits, ICI shut the plant down. The Germans didn’t believe this and said, that anyway it was impossible to do the measurement.
ICI gave up on the process and demolished their plant, but sadly the German plant blew up.
It does look like HiiROC have tamed the process to be able to put hydrocarbons in one end and get hydrogen and carbon black out the other.
I wonder how many old and possibly dangerous chemical processes can be reimagined using modern technology.
It certainly appears that Centrica are not holding back on innovation.
Conclusion
I’ve never run a large electricity network. Not even a simulated one.
But I’m fairly sure that having a large number of assets of different sizes, that can be optimised to the load and the fuel available, creates a more reliable and efficient network.
Heavy energy users may even have their own small efficient power station, that is powered by gases piped from the local landfill.
Hydrogen Engines To Be Mass Produced By Hyundai By 2025
The title of this post, is the same as that, of this article on Hydrogen Fuel News.
This is the sub-heading.
Hyundai Doosan Infracore is accelerating engine development
These are the first two paragraphs.
After the completion of its H2 internal combustion engines (ICE) design and rolling out the prototype, Hyundai Doosan Infracore (HDI) is revving up the development of its hydrogen engines, with the aim to mass produce these engines by 2025.
The hydrogen-powered internal combustion engine can produce a power output of 300 kW (402 HP) and a torque of 1700 NM at 2000 RPM. Fulfilling Tier 5/Stage 5/Euro7 regulation, the engine satisfies the emission requirements to be 90% decreased to the current level to meet Zero CO2 (below 1g/kwh) and Zero Impact Emission.
Note.
- The engine is described as an 11 litre class engine.
- The new hydrogen engines that will be produced will be installed on commercial vehicles, including large buses, trucks and construction equipment.
It should also be noted that Hyundai are investors in Hull-based hydrogen production company; HiiROC, as I wrote about in Centrica Partners With Hull-Based HiiRoc For Hydrogen Fuel Switch Trial At Humber Power Plant.
Hyundai now have the hydrogen internal combustion engine to go with HiiROC, who are developing the means to produce hydrogen at a filling station or depot.
A Problem With The Hydrogen Fuel News Article
This article on Diesel Progress, which is entitled Hyundai Doosan Infracore To Launch Hydrogen Engine covers the same story.
But it shows a different picture of the hydrogen internal combustion engine, which as it looks like one, I assume it is the correct image.
Good Vibrations Turbo Charge Green Hydrogen Production
The title of this post, is the same as this news item from RMIT University in Australia.
This is the sub-heading.
Engineers in Melbourne have used sound waves to boost production of green hydrogen by 14 times, through electrolysis to split water.
And these are the first two paragraphs.
They say their invention offers a promising way to tap into a plentiful supply of cheap hydrogen fuel for transportation and other sectors, which could radically reduce carbon emissions and help fight climate change.
By using high-frequency vibrations to “divide and conquer” individual water molecules during electrolysis, the team managed to split the water molecules to release 14 times more hydrogen compared with standard electrolysis techniques
I could understand a two or three times increase, but fourteen times is sensational.
Again, Australia seems to have found the gold through innovative green technology.
Other Benefits
Read the last sections of the news item.
- The process allows the use of cheaper silver electrodes instead of platinum and iridium.
- The engineers also feel that their technique could help in this and other process where bubbles are a problem.
Sound waves have been used for decades for various processes and I am surprised that this appears to be the first time, they’ve applied to electrolysis.
Conclusion
I worked in a hydrogen factory around 1970 and have watched developments over the years.
I am now convinced that an individual or a company will come up with an affordable way to make green hydrogen.
Promising technologies in addition to this one include.
- High Temperature Electrolysis. See Nuclear-Enabled Hydrogen – How It Helps To Reach Net Zero.
- HiiROC See Centrica Partners With Hull-Based HiiRoc For Hydrogen Fuel Switch Trial At Humber Power Plant.
- Electrolysis of sea water. See Torvex Energy.
I can see a combination of a couple of methods.
Centrica Partners With Hull-Based HiiRoc For Hydrogen Fuel Switch Trial At Humber Power Plant
The title of this post, is the same as that on this article on Business Live.
This is a paragraph.
It comes as the owner of British Gas has also increased its shareholding in the three-year-old business to five per cent. Last November it was one of several investors to pump £28 million into HiiRoc alongside Melrose Industries, HydrogenOne, Cemex, Hyundai and Kia, who joined existing strategic investors Wintershall Dea and VNG.
This could be sensational.
The reason I said that was that I used to share an office at ICI Mond Division, with Peter, who was putting instruments on a plant called the Badische. It was a new process to create acetylene. If I remember correctly, the process was as follows.
Ethylene was burned and then quenched in naptha.
The trouble was that the process produced a lot of carbon, which clogged the burners, and masses of black smoke, which upset everybody in Runcorn, especially on washing day!
Someone was worried that the plant might go into explosive limits, so Peter had devised a clever infra-red instrument to read the composition of the off-gas from the burner. It was found to be in explosive limits and ICI shut it down. BASF said ICI were wrong and there was no way to measure the composition of the off-gas anyway. A few months later BASF’s plant exploded and buried itself in a hillside in Southern Germany. Upon hearing this news, ICI shut the Badische for ever. ICI were annoyed in that they had to spend £200,000 on a flameless cutter to dismantle the plant.
I do wonder, if HiiROC have tamed BASF’s beast to do something useful, like produce hydrogen and carbon black!
The Anonymous Widower 