Japan is a heavy hitter in the renewable energy world and the country’s latest ambitious plan to apply nuclear power to hydrogen production has the makings of a solid new fuel option. The technology, which involves nuclear reactors operating at high temperatures around 900ºC (1,650ºF), aims to deliver a clean fuel option for the transport industry and the potential is looking positive in these early days.
Japan is looking to red hydrogen to fuel the transport sector
Japan is looking to a future where renewably produced hydrogen is one of the fuels used to generate electricity, and the form of hydrogen it’s working on is known as “red hydrogen” due to nuclear power being applied in its production.
The development of alternative green fuels is a vital endeavor as the world moves towards renewable solutions to replace the burning of fossil fuels like coal, oil, and natural gas. Electric vehicles are the most popular clean vehicle options these days, but they’re responsible for a growing volume of pressure on electricity grids and countries need to come up with ways to make up for this.
What does the future of hydrogen production look like?
Electric vehicles (EVs) are growing in popularity and every year, a large number of models are added to the market and the pace is not expected to slow any time soon. More EVs on the roads means more vehicles that have to be charged overnight, which places a strain on the electricity grid. Grids in many areas are already experiencing strain, so the added power drawn by EVs is creating energy pressure.
Red hydrogen is the answer, according to the Japanese. The Asian country is a global leader in nuclear energy, and it plans to apply its technology and investments in this direction. The move is an innovative one that no one else is attempting and it’s gathering some attention in the sector.
Under its Green Growth Strategies, Japan has a target of reaching carbon neutrality by 2050.
Hydrogen has the highest specific energy density of any known fuel after nuclear power. It can be burned to generate heat and used in fuel cells to produce electricity. The only byproduct generated is water vapor.
Japan has another top-class renewable initiative on the go. The country recently unveiled what’s being described as the world’s first solar super-panel with the power of 20 nuclear reactors.
What’s the context of hydrogen in the transport sector
In terms of legislation, both the United States and Europe have shown strong support for battery-electric vehicles. Japan as a whole and companies like Toyota and Honda haven’t gone all-out on all-electric vehicles, expecting that the future will feature hydrogen fuel and hydrogen-powered vehicles. While hydrogen burns cleanly, it is only as renewable as the energy and processes used to produce it, and unfortunately, 90% of the world’s hydrogen still involves burning fossil fuels.
Red hydrogen still involves challenges to overcome
The nuclear red hydrogen production process is clean and sustainable, but clean-burning hydrogen comes with complexities thanks to its volumetric density. The result is that hydrogen must be compressed at very high pressures to make it practical, which is challenging for storage and transportation. This is one of the reasons why lithium-ion batteries continue to be a less expensive way to power electric cars compared to hydrogen fuel cells.
It’s going to take decades to install the infrastructure needed to distribute red hydrogen. But it’s looking like a more and more viable option as the technology advances and a future where hydrogen plays a big role is not far off.
In more news about Japan and renewable fuel, Mazda is fully committed to rotary engines and the design team proved it when they started working on laser ignition technology for its 16X model.