Metal-water reactors for producing hydrogen on demand for mines and remote industry

用于根据矿山和偏远工业需求生产氢气的金属水反应堆

• 批准号: 566748-2021
• 负责人: Bergthorson, Jeffrey
• 金额: $ 9.13万
• 依托单位: McGill University
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Alliance Grants
• 财政年份: 2021
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2021-01-01 至 2022-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=722001
• 关键词: Metal; water; reactors; producing; hydrogen

Renewable primary energy sources are proving to be economical and adopting these technologies to achieve a low-carbon society is within reach. However, Canada must still address two greater challenges to successfully transition away from carbon-based energy. First is the seasonal storage of clean energy. We need a mechanism by which to store clean energy on a seasonal basis to help balance the seasonal variability of clean energy and allow for export of excess clean energy from Canada. Second is the decarbonization of the heavy industry, transportation and remote, or off-grid, power generation sectors. These sectors are still heavily reliant on fossil fuels, and will remain so unless viable, cost-effective, low-carbon alternatives are developed. The engines used in these applications require sustained, high-power, which batteries cannot provide. Hydrogen has been considered but not adopted, because its inherently low energy density renders it too expensive to store and transport. We propose to use metals, such as aluminum and zinc, as a cheap alternative to store the excess clean energy. The metal fuel would react with water at elevated temperatures and pressures to release heat, hydrogen gas, and metal oxides. The heat can be used to drive a steam turbine to produce power. The hydrogen may be used for hydrogen vehicles, or in a heat engine to produce more power. The metal oxides are non-toxic and can be fully recycled back to the original metal using carbon-free processes. As such, metals are circular fuels that can be sustainable for the long term. This project aims to bring metal-water reactor technology a step closer to commercialization. The main focus of this project will be on developing a metal-water continuous flow reactor, assessing the recyclability of the metal oxides produced, and build the business case for metal fuels through a variety of case studies. The development of metal-water technologies will enable Canada to cheaply store and transport clean energy. This will support Canadians in transitioning away from fossil fuels to renewable sources. It will also put Canada as a global leader in large scale clean energy solutions.

可再生的主要能源被证明是经济的，并且采用这些技术来实现低碳社会。但是，加拿大仍然必须解决两个更大的挑战，以成功地从基于碳的能源过渡。首先是清洁能源的季节性存储。我们需要一种机制，可以通过季节性存储清洁能源，以帮助平衡清洁能源的季节性变异性并允许从加拿大出口过多的清洁能源。第二是重工业，运输和偏远或离网，发电部门的脱碳化。这些部门仍然在很大程度上依赖化石燃料，除非开发出可行，成本效益，低碳替代品，否则将保持这种状态。这些应用中使用的发动机需要电池无法提供的持续高功率。氢已被考虑但不采用，因为它固有的低能密度使其储存和运输太昂贵。我们建议将金属（例如铝和锌）用作存储多余的清洁能量的廉价替代品。金属燃料会在升高的温度和压力下与水反应，以释放热量，氢气和金属氧化物。热量可用于驱动蒸汽轮机以产生动力。该氢可用于氢车辆，也可用于加热发动机以产生更多的功率。金属氧化物是无毒的，可以使用无碳的工艺完全回收回原始金属。因此，金属是可以长期可持续可持续的圆形燃料。 该项目旨在使金属水反应堆技术更接近商业化。该项目的主要重点是开发金属水连续流动反应堆，评估产生的金属氧化物的可回收性，并通过各种案例研究为金属燃料制造业务案例。金属水技术的开发将使加拿大能够便宜地存储和运输清洁能源。这将支持加拿大人从化石燃料过渡到可再生能源。它还将使加拿大成为大规模清洁能源解决方案的全球领导者。