{"id":8642,"date":"2023-11-29T09:17:02","date_gmt":"2023-11-29T02:17:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ceco.com.vn\/?p=8642"},"modified":"2026-11-03T09:54:25","modified_gmt":"2026-11-03T02:54:25","slug":"nhung-cong-nghe-san-xuat-hydro-pho-bien-nhat-hien-nay-cap-nhat-thang-7-2023","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ceco.com.vn\/en\/nhung-cong-nghe-san-xuat-hydro-pho-bien-nhat-hien-nay-cap-nhat-thang-7-2023\/","title":{"rendered":"Most Common Hydrogen Production Technologies Today (Updated July 2023)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Below are the four most common hydrogen production technologies currently updated by the United States Department of Energy (DOE). In addition, several emerging technologies are under active development, including thermochemical water splitting, photobiological water splitting, and photoelectrochemical water splitting... Summarized by technical specialists at Vietnam Energy Magazine.<\/p>\n

Although hydrogen is abundant on Earth as a chemical element, it is almost exclusively bonded within chemical compounds such as water (H2O) or methane (CH4) and must be separated into pure hydrogen gas (H2) for practical applications, including fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs). In a fuel cell, hydrogen fuel combines electrochemically with oxygen from the air to generate electricity and water. Hydrogen can be produced from diverse feedstocks, such as fossil fuels, biomass, and the electrolysis of water using electricity. The environmental footprint and energy efficiency of hydrogen depend directly on the production pathway employed.<\/p>\n

The Clean Hydrogen Standard of \u2264 2.0 kg CO2e per kg of H2 produced was established by the US Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Technologies Office under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. This standard provides an objective, technology-agnostic metric for clean hydrogen. The paramount engineering and economic challenge in hydrogen production is driving down production capital and levelized operational costs to make clean hydrogen competitive with conventional transportation and industrial fuels.<\/p>\n

Below are the predominant hydrogen production technologies deployed today:<\/p>\n

1. Natural Gas Reforming \/ Gasification:<\/strong><\/p>\n

(Natural Gas Reforming \/ Gasification) - A synthesis gas mixture comprising hydrogen, carbon monoxide, and small amounts of carbon dioxide is generated by reacting natural gas with high-temperature steam (700\u00b0C - 1,000\u00b0C). Carbon monoxide then reacts with steam to generate additional hydrogen. This pathway is currently the most mature, cost-effective, and widely adopted industrial method.<\/p>\n

Synthesis gas (syngas) can also be manufactured by reacting coal or solid biomass feedstocks with steam and oxygen at elevated temperatures in a pressurized gasifier. This thermochemical process converts coal or biomass into gaseous constituents\u2014a process known as Gasification. The resulting syngas, rich in hydrogen and carbon monoxide, is subsequently reacted with steam to separate hydrogen.<\/p>\n

Natural gas reforming (NGR) represents an advanced, commercially mature production route that leverages existing natural gas pipeline and distribution infrastructure. Currently, approximately 95% of industrial hydrogen produced in the United States utilizes this technology in centralized processing facilities. It constitutes the critical commercial pathway for near-term hydrogen production.<\/p>\n

- Steam - Methane Reforming (SMR):<\/p>\n

This is an established, commercially proven industrial process in which high-temperature steam (700\u00b0C - 1,000\u00b0C) reacts with methane feedstock (such as natural gas) under operating pressures of 3 to 25 bar (1 bar = 14.5 psi) across a catalytic bed to produce hydrogen, carbon monoxide, and relatively low concentrations of carbon dioxide. Steam reforming is an endothermic process\u2014meaning external thermal energy must be continuously supplied to drive the chemical reaction forward.<\/p>\n

Subsequently, in the water-gas shift (WGS) reaction, carbon monoxide and steam react over catalysts to form carbon dioxide and additional hydrogen. In the final purification stage, utilizing pressure swing adsorption (PSA), carbon dioxide and other impurities are stripped from the gas stream, leaving high-purity hydrogen gas. Steam reforming can also be applied to convert other hydrocarbon and alcohol feedstocks (such as ethanol, propane, or naphtha).<\/p>\n

Steam - Methane Reforming reaction: CH4 + H2O (+ heat) \u2192 CO + 3H2.<\/p>\n

Water-gas shift reaction: CO + H2O \u2192 CO2 + H2 (+ small amount of heat).<\/p>\n

- Partial Oxidation (POX):<\/p>\n

In partial oxidation, methane and higher hydrocarbons within natural gas react with a substoichiometric volume of oxygen (typically sourced from air) insufficient to fully oxidize hydrocarbons into carbon dioxide and water. Due to oxygen limitation, the reaction products consist predominantly of hydrogen, carbon monoxide (and nitrogen when air is used rather than pure oxygen), with minimal carbon dioxide. Subsequently, via the water-gas shift reaction, carbon monoxide reacts with steam to produce additional hydrogen and carbon dioxide.<\/p>\n

Partial oxidation is an exothermic reaction process. Generally, POX proceeds much faster than steam methane reforming and requires smaller reactor vessels. However, as demonstrated by the reaction stoichiometry, partial oxidation initially yields less hydrogen per unit of hydrocarbon feedstock compared to steam reforming.<\/p>\n

Methane partial oxidation reaction: CH4 + \u00bdO2 \u2192 CO + 2H2 (+ heat).<\/p>\n

Water-gas shift reaction: CO + H2O \u2192 CO2 + H2 (+ small amount of heat).<\/p>\n

Low-cost natural gas reforming supplies hydrogen today for fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs) and industrial chemicals. In the long term, the DOE anticipates natural gas-based hydrogen production will be complemented and decarbonized through carbon capture and storage (CCS), nuclear energy, and renewable power.<\/p>\n

Hydrogen fuel cell vehicles achieve higher energy efficiency and virtually zero tailpipe emissions compared to internal combustion engines. The sole tailpipe emission from an FCEV is pure water vapor, reducing lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions by half and lowering primary fuel consumption by over 90% compared to gasoline vehicles.<\/p>\n

2. Electrolysis Technology:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Direct electric current dissociates water into hydrogen and oxygen. When electricity is supplied by renewable energy sources (such as wind or solar power), the produced hydrogen is classified as green renewable hydrogen. Power-to-Gas and Power-to-Hydrogen facilities are expanding rapidly, converting surplus renewable power into storable hydrogen fuel via water electrolysis.<\/p>\n

Electrolysis is a promising decarbonized pathway to produce carbon-free hydrogen from renewable and nuclear power. This process utilizes electricity to split demineralized water into hydrogen and oxygen inside an electrolyzer stack. Electrolyzers range in capacity from compact, modular skid units for decentralized refueling stations to multi-megawatt centralized industrial plants coupled directly to utility-scale renewable generation.<\/p>\n

Similar to a fuel cell, an electrolyzer consists of an anode and a cathode separated by an electrolyte membrane or medium. Electrolyzers operate under distinct electrochemical principles depending on the electrolyte chemistry and charge-carrying ions:<\/p>\n

- Polymer Electrolyte Membrane (PEM) Electrolyzers:<\/p>\n

In PEM electrolyzers, the electrolyte consists of a solid, acidic perfluorosulfonic acid polymer membrane. At the anode, water molecules are split into oxygen gas, electrons, and positively charged hydrogen ions (protons). Electrons travel through an external circuit while protons selectively migrate across the PEM membrane to the cathode. At the cathode, protons recombine with electrons to form high-purity hydrogen gas.<\/p>\n

Anode reaction: 2H2O \u2192 O2 + 4H+ + 4e-.<\/p>\n

Cathode reaction: 4H+ + 4e- \u2192 2H2.<\/p>\n

- Alkaline Water Electrolyzers (AWE):<\/p>\n

Alkaline electrolyzers operate via the transport of hydroxide ions (OH-) across a porous diaphragm separator from cathode to anode, with hydrogen evolved at the cathode. Utilizing liquid alkaline electrolytes\u2014typically aqueous potassium hydroxide (KOH) or sodium hydroxide (NaOH)\u2014this technology represents the most mature, commercially deployed electrolysis system. Emerging solid Anion Exchange Membrane (AEM) electrolysis is currently demonstrating substantial progress at laboratory and pilot scales.<\/p>\n

- Solid Oxide Electrolyzer Cells (SOEC):<\/p>\n

Solid oxide electrolyzers utilize solid ceramic metal-oxide electrolytes that selectively conduct negatively charged oxygen ions (O2-) at high temperatures (typically 700\u00b0C - 800\u00b0C), splitting high-temperature steam. Steam at the cathode combines with incoming electrons to produce hydrogen gas and oxygen ions. Oxygen ions migrate through the dense ceramic electrolyte to the anode, releasing oxygen gas and returning electrons to the external circuit.<\/p>\n

High-temperature operation substantially reduces electrical demand by substituting thermal energy, making SOEC systems highly efficient when thermally integrated with industrial waste heat or nuclear power plants. Advanced proton-conducting ceramic electrolyzers (PCEC) are lowering operating temperatures down to 500\u00b0C - 600\u00b0C.<\/p>\n

Water electrolysis represents the cornerstone pathway to achieve the DOE Hydrogen Energy Earthshot target: reducing the cost of clean hydrogen by 80% to $1 per 1 kg within one decade. Hydrogen produced via electrolysis emits zero direct greenhouse gases, depending entirely on the emissions profile of the electricity feed.<\/p>\n

Furthermore, electrolysis offers crucial grid balancing services for intermittent renewable power (wind and solar). Co-locating electrolysis stacks with utility wind and solar assets allows surplus power curtailment to be avoided, converting stranded electrons into storable green hydrogen molecules.<\/p>\n

3. Biomass-Derived Liquid Reforming:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Liquid feedstocks derived from biomass\u2014including bio-ethanol and bio-oil\u2014can be thermochemically reformed to produce hydrogen via processes conceptually analogous to natural gas reforming. Liquid biofuels offer superior transportability and handling compared to raw solid biomass, enabling decentralized distributed hydrogen production at fueling depots.<\/p>\n

Reforming biomass-derived liquids involves reacting vaporized liquid fuels with high-temperature steam over specialized catalysts to yield syngas (H2 and CO), followed by the water-gas shift reaction to maximize H2 yield, and PSA purification.<\/p>\n

Steam reforming of ethanol: C2H5OH + H2O (+ heat) \u2192 2CO + 4H2.<\/p>\n

Water-gas shift reaction: CO + H2O \u2192 CO2 + H2 (+ small amount of heat).<\/p>\n

Agricultural residues and energy crops provide abundant dry biomass potential, supporting sustainable renewable hydrogen production without competing with food security.<\/p>\n

4. Microbial Biomass Conversion:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Biomass can be converted into sugar-rich feedstocks and fermented by specialized microorganisms to produce hydrogen gas through dark fermentation or photo-fermentation. Microbial biomass conversion leverages bacterial metabolism to decompose organic materials, agricultural residues, and wastewater without requiring external light energy.<\/p>\n

In direct bio-hydrogen fermentation, anaerobic bacteria break down complex carbohydrates via enzymatic cascades to release hydrogen gas. Ongoing bioengineering research focuses on optimizing metabolic pathways, enhancing hydrogenase enzyme kinetics, and elevating hydrogen yields per mole of substrate.<\/p>\n

Microbial Electrolysis Cells (MEC) represent another advanced bioprocess, where bacteria consume organic waste to release protons and electrons, and with a small applied external voltage (0.2 - 0.8 V), combine them at the cathode to evolve hydrogen gas. MEC systems offer dual benefits: energy-efficient municipal and industrial wastewater remediation coupled with on-site clean fuel generation.<\/p>\n

Continuing technological advancements across microbial strain engineering, bioreactor architecture optimization, and bioprocess control are paving the way toward scalable commercial bio-hydrogen production.<\/p>\n

Source: Vietnam Energy Magazine Editorial Board<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

An overview by the US Department of Energy (DOE) of four major commercial hydrogen production pathways: natural gas reforming, water electrolysis, biomass liquid reforming, and microbial conversion.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8643,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6,1,7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8642","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-tin-cong-ty","category-tin-tuc","category-tin-tuc-nganh"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ceco.com.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8642","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ceco.com.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ceco.com.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ceco.com.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ceco.com.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8642"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/ceco.com.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8642\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8645,"href":"https:\/\/ceco.com.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8642\/revisions\/8645"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ceco.com.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8643"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ceco.com.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8642"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ceco.com.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8642"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ceco.com.vn\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8642"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}