Fuelling innovation: trailblazing hydrogen demonstration projects begin

Ambitious projects designed to showcase technologies to promote hydrogen’s production, distribution and end use have begun with the support of the Hydrogen Innovation Initiative (HII) and Connected Places Catapult.

The four trailblazing demonstration projects are each being led by Hydrologiq, National Gas Metering, Wild Hydrogen, and Ultima Forma. The Hydrogen Innovation Initiative, funded by Innovate UK, is bringing together industry, government, and academia to create an investible, globally competitive hydrogen technology and services sector, here in the UK.

Hydrologiq is accelerating the transition away from diesel generators to off-grid electricity powered by hydrogen. In this demonstration, Hydrologiq is providing a hydrogen powered generator deployment to GRAHAM to power a site beside the M2 highway in Kent.

The demonstration plans to cover the full cycle of hydrogen generator deployment from planning through to operation and monitoring, while integrating the full hydrogen supply chain. The learnings that it intends to capture and share promise huge benefits to the construction industry in its efforts to accelerate decarbonisation.

National Gas Metering in partnership with Falcon Foodservice Equipment commissioned a commercial catering and test facility at Tyseley Energy Park in Birmingham to explore the feasibility and scalability of using hydrogen in commercial catering. The ‘kitchen’ contains innovative hydrogen appliances and new hydrogen metering and ancillary equipment, as well as pipework, testing new fitting and connections.

The kitchen will be used to support product, appliance and infrastructure development. Both National Gas Metering and Falcon Foodservice Equipment will collaborate with a wide variety of supply chain partners and wider industry stakeholders such as the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, gas networks, and the Institution of Gas Engineers and Managers (IGEM).

Wild Hydrogen aims to produce affordable, carbon-negative hydrogen using its RiPR technology to convert any biogenic material into clear hydrogen, while removing carbon from the atmosphere. The demonstration will integrate a Pressure Swing Adsorption (PSA) system to help purify produced synthesis gas, which will enable removal and capture of carbon dioxide, leaving a high-calorific gas comprised of methane and hydrogen. The demonstration will prove whether PSA is compatible with the produced gases, while also demonstrating the provision of a transition fuel applicable to hydrogen blended gas grid applications, internal combustion engines, or gas turbines. Wild Hydrogen is working closely with researchers from the University of Edinburgh on this demonstration project.

Ultima Forma is developing lightweight liquid hydrogen pipes for the next generation of aircraft. Flexible, hermetically sealed, twin-walled vacuum pipes manufactured with a patented electroforming process are designed to offer significant weight savings over competing stainless-steel technology. The demonstration plans to test a pipe under cryogenic conditions using liquid hydrogen with support from experts at Filton Systems Engineering. This project aims to measure vacuum integrity, validate mass per unit length and heat flux properties of the proposed solution. This will provide essential data for ongoing hydrogen aircraft system development programmes and other potential use cases for liquid hydrogen.

“We're delighted to announce our support for these ground-breaking demonstrations partnering with Hydrologiq, National Gas Metering, Wild Hydrogen, and Ultima Forma. Together we're embarking on a series of demonstrations to explore the potential of hydrogen-based technologies across multiple sectors”.

Connected Places Catapult’s Concept Demonstration Team Lead, Alan Nettleton

The Hydrogen Innovation Initiative’s mission is to help build robust and resilient hydrogen technology supply chains. By accelerating the development of critical technologies and supply chains for the hydrogen economy, we will support UK industry to anchor high-value jobs, boost resilience and drive decarbonisation. HII is supporting industry to seize this opportunity by scaling product and service development to secure thousands of sustainable jobs and help improve export prospects, allowing UK businesses to compete in the global hydrogen economy.Applications are now open for the next round of the Hydrogen Innovation Initiative demonstration support. Companies can apply for up to £35k to demonstrate technology related to the production, conversion, distribution or end use of hydrogen.