FortisBC in funding deal to support hydrogen from pyrolysis
BC utility FortisBC said August 14 it had entered into a funding agreement with VulcanX Energy to support the development of pyrolysis technology to produce hydrogen and solid carbon from natural gas.
FortisBC, through its Clean Growth Innovation Fund, is providing funding to VulcanX for the development of its proprietary technology.
“We are pleased to work with companies such as VulcanX through the Clean Growth Innovation Fund to advance the development of new technologies that can be used for the production of hydrogen,” said Joe Mazza, vice president of energy supply and resource development at FortisBC. “We believe that hydrogen has the potential to play a significant role in a lower-carbon energy future and can help meet the energy needs of British Columbians while supporting the goals of the province’s CleanBC strategy.”
Amendments to BC’s Greenhouse Gas Reduction Regulation allow utilities like FortisBC, which supplies natural gas and electricity to much of the province, to play a role in establishing and growing the hydrogen sector in BC. Through the GGRR, FortisBC can invest directly in hydrogen production and distribute it as an energy source.
VulcanX Energy’s pyrolysis technology, which is being tested at a demonstration facility in Alberta, bubbles natural gas through a molten metal recirculation system. The reaction that occurs in this high temperature, oxygen-free environment converts the natural gas (mostly methane, CH4) into its basic constituents, hydrogen and solid carbon.
The process produces 1 kg of hydrogen and 3 kg of carbon from 4 kg of methane. Steam methane reforming (SMR), the most widely-used technology for hydrogen production, produces 1 kg of hydrogen and more than 9 kg of CO2from 3.4 kg of methane and 12 kg of water.
The FortisBC funding will be used to support front-end engineering and detailed design of a facility capable of producing up to 1 tonne/day of hydrogen.