Hydrogen. Green that I want you to design green

by Alberto Belda | Nov 8, 2024 | CARTIF Blog, Energy

The importance of the design tools and green hydrogen optimisation

Green hydrogen is positioning itself as a viable alternative in the context of the transition towards clean and sustainable energy sources. Not only does this energy carrier transform energy without emitting pollutants, but it also has significant long-term storage capacity, which helps to address one of the main problems of renewable energy sources such as solar and wind: their intermittent and seasonal nature.

Due to the several hydrogen applications and the variable nature of renewable sources, the design and optimisation of green hydrogen production, storage and utilisation systems are complex processes especially when applyied to industrial processes, where careful management of the entire chain is necessary to ensure continuous and efficient operation. This is where simulation and optimisation tools plays a crucial role, facilitating the efficient integration of hydrogen into the energy system and enabling optimal decisions to be made based on detailed data and accurate projections.

Need for specialised tools for energy transition

In order to move towards a more sustainable and decarbonised energy system, it is essential to apply dynamic modelling and simulation to optimise both the production and use of green hydrogen in the residential, industrial and heavy transport sectors, as each has different energy demand patterns, requiring the development of specific tools to evaluate multiple scenarios, optimise design and determine the most appropriate control and management strategies.

These tools not only allow the simulation of system behaviour under real conditions, but also help to optimise important parameters such as electrolyser power ratings, hydrogen storage volume and the management of optimal times to consume or storage energy. The application of advanced optimisation algorithms aims to reduce operational and investment costs while maximising the use of renewable energy by ensuring that the best technical, economical and ecological decisions are made.

Functionalities of the developed tool

CARTIF which is a Cervera Centre of Excellence, awarded by the Ministry of Science and Innovation and the CDTI, under the files CER-20191019 and CER-20211002 has developed a tool for the design and optimisation of this type of systems thanks to the CERVERA H24NewAge project. It is a platform that enables the design and optimisation of systems for the production and use of green hydrogen in residential and industrial environments by applying dynamic modelling together with Python through an easy-to-use web interface that facilitates access to complex simulations without the need for advanced technical knowledge, contributing to the democratisation of hydrogen technology, allowing users with different levels of experience to interact with complex models and gather useful information for decision-making in the design of their systems. Some of the key points of the tool are:

• Simulation of hydrogen production scenarios: Users can simulate a variety of hydrogen production environments, such as industrial processes, industrial cogeneration, residential micro-cogeneration and large-scale power generation.

• Optimisation Based on Advance Algorithms: The tool helps to size the optimal size of system components, minimising costs and maximising renewable energy utilisation using advanced optimisation algorithms. It also includes the creation of operational strategies that consider renewable energy availability, hydrogen demand and storage constraints to achieve economical and efficient operation.

• Flexibility and Adaptability: Crucial parameters such as geographic location, demand profiles and renewable production technologies can be adjusted through the platform, making it ideal for a variety of scenarios and specific needs. This capability is fundamental for users to assess how their designs would perform in different situations and scenarios, adapting hydrogen production and storage technologies to the particularities of each environment.

• Visualization of results: The tool’s web interface makes it easy to visualise simulation results through interactive graphs and tables showing key aspects of the system, such as energy efficiency, operating costs and storage capacity. Users can also compare the results of different scenarios, which is essential for identifying opportunities for improvement and making further adjustments.

Conclusions

Ultimately, tools such as these can be used to evaluate and optimise strategies for the production and use of green hydrogen, facilitating its integration into the energy system and contributing to a more sustainable future. Thanks to access to advanced models and optimisation algorithms, these tools enable informed decisions to be made, resulting in more efficient and resilient systems. A clear example would be the optimal hydrogen storage capacity, the correct estimation of which can avoid unnecessary costs and ensure a constant supply, increasing the operational efficiency of the system. In addition, the ease of use and flexibility offered by these platforms help reduce the technical barriers to adopting green hydrogen, making it an accessible and viable option for a wider range of users and applications. This is key to moving towards an effective energy transition and to fostering solutions that reduce dependence on fossil fuels and support climate change mitigation.

Co-authors

Jesús Samaniego. Industrial Engineer. Since 2002 he has been working at CARTIF in the development of projects within the field of energy efficiency, the integration of renewable energies and in the study of the quality of the electricity supply

From consumer to prosumer

by Alberto Belda | Feb 26, 2021 | CARTIF Blog, Energy

Most users have been consuming electricity in the same way our entire lives. We simply know that we can plug in the electrical device wqe want at any time, and that, in return, at the end of the month, we get a bill (for many, more difficult to understand than an Egyptian hieroglyph, by the way). But this way of consuming electricity can change very soon (if it hasn´t already). Not for a long time, we can contribute with our own energy to the main grid without many complications, decide when is the best moment for us to consume, or partner with other users to benefit each other…or all these options at the same time.

In other words, the energy sector is moving from a model in which the user had a merely passive role, to a totally different one, where the user can have an active participation in the production, management and consumption of electricity. For this paradigm shift, a new word has emerged as a result of combining producer and consumer: prosumer.

Although the concept of prosumer is now broader, it originally refers to users who produces their own energy for their own consumption, and discharge the surpluses to the electrical network. In this way, not only we can consume less from the grid, but our electricity is also supplied to the main system, and we contribute to achieving a more sustainable model while we reduce our bill.

Given the rise of distributed generation facilities for self-consumption, largely driven by the publication of RD 244/2019 in Spain, it is not surprising that this type of prosumer is the most common. However, the options for prosumers are more and more varied, and are not only limited to installing solar panels on our roof.

For example, the interaction of the user with the main grid can also be more proactive by combining responsible electricity consumption with electricity tariffs which depend on the market price (rates indexed to the electricity pool market-the hourly market-, also called PVPCs tariffs in the case of Spain-stating for Small Consumer Voluntary Price-, for users with a contracted power lower than 10kW).With this type of tariff, every day you can know the hourly price of electricity for the next day, so that if today we are told that tomorrow morning the price of electricity will cost almost 90% less than it costs right now (as happened a few days ago in the Iberian Peninsula(, we can decide if we prefer no to turn on certain appliances today (e.g. washing machine, dryer or dishwasher, in the case of residential consumers), and use them tomorrow, hence getting some savings due to the energy term associated to their consumptions.

But, what happens when there is hardly any sun or wind, and the prices of the electricity market soar to all-time highs, as happened a few weeks ago during the storm Filomena in Spain? In the previous case,basically we would have to ´´ endure the downpour´ and pay it at the end of the month. How ever, if we had energy storage solutions, we could avoid these type of scenarios, and in general we could reduce our consumption from the grid durign periods when the price of energy is high. This prosumer alternative is also very simple: at night or in the morning, when electricity is cheaper, we could program the charging of our energy storage equipment (electric batteries, including our own electric vehicle, but also thrmal systems of thermoelectricc), so that when the price of electricity went up, we would not have to pay its exorbitant costs, but could use our stored energy.

Precisely, this combination of prosumer options– installation of a renewable production system, storage, dynamic rates and active management of our demand- is part of the study that is being considered in the MiniStor Project, where CARTIF has participated since last year. In this project, a thermoelectric storage system that integrates lithium batteries, phase change materials and a thermochemical reactor is being developed, also including hybrid solar panels that produce both heat and electricity and an optimal energy management, considering both the prediction of our consumption, the prediction of our systems production, and the electricicty costs. A very interesting challenge for which we will be able to tell you more about very soon.

As we have seen, the prosumers´ participation options go far beyond having our own self-consumption facility (which is not a small thing), and, although this time we have presented a few, the alternatives where this actor has a fundamental role are almost infinite (demand aggregators, blockchain integration, microgrids, energy communities…) Surely, in a short time others options will emerge, that at the moment we cannot imagine. What is clear, is that the role of prosumers is already considered as decisive, we are at the beginning of what can be a true paradigm shift in the energy sector, and from CARTIF we are on the trail to be leaders in this revolution.

And you, do you want to become a prosumer?