As the world continues its search for cleaner and more sustainable energy sources, hydrogen

produced using renewable electricity is rapidly emerging as the most promising option for cross-
sectoral decarbonisation.
With an energy content of 120 megajoules per kilogram (MJ/kg), hydrogen is nearly three times
higher by weight and four times lower by volume compared to petrol (45.8MJ/kg) and diesel
(45.5MJ/kg). Countries across the globe have recognized hydrogen’s potential to decarbonise multi-
faceted sectors, including heat-intensive industries, medium-to-heavy mobility, and power.
Countries like Germany, Australia, Japan, and Saudi Arabia have set ambitious strategies and
roadmaps, with a clear intent of cross-sectoral decarbonisation.
With an atomic weight of 1, hydrogen is the lightest element and the most abundant element in the
universe. It is non-toxic, colourless, and odourless. Despite its abundance, hydrogen does not
occur naturally as a gas. Instead, it exists as a compound that can be extracted using various
chemical processes.
The world produces around 70 million metric tonnes of hydrogen every year. Most of this is
consumed for industrial applications, particularly for fertiliser production and petroleum
refining. Almost all this hydrogen produced is through steam methane reforming (SMR) of natural
gas.
Colour codes are assigned to hydrogen based on the feedstock/raw material used for
production. For example, hydrogen produced through SMR is grey, SMR with carbon
capture utilization and storage (CCUS) is blue, while green hydrogen is produced through water
electrolysis. In addition, there are various other colour codes associated with the feedstock and
production pathway, as seen in figure.

Fig 1: The hydrogen colour spectrum

Some of the key hydrogen production pathways are SMR, electrolysis, gasification of organic matter,
photolysis, and biological pathways using microorganisms.
Steam methane reformation of the natural gas involves the reaction of methane with steam at very
high temperatures (700 – 1,000 degrees Celsius). in the presence of a catalyst. In this process, every
kilogram of hydrogen produced generates around 10 kilograms of carbon dioxide (CO2). This
established technology is carbon-intensive, accounting for 830 million tonnes of CO2 emissions
annually. This is equivalent to the combined emissions of the United Kingdom and Indonesia.
Current global hydrogen production can be decarbonised (blue hydrogen) by capturing CO2, storing,
and utilizing it in non-emitting ways (CCUS) and by production of green hydrogen.

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Hydrogen produced using electricity from renewable sources like solar and wind is termed green
hydrogen. In this pathway, the water molecules are split into hydrogen and oxygen through
electrolysers using renewable electricity. Deionized water is the feedstock. Hydrogen and
oxygen produced are about 99.9% pure and have a significant economic value. Based on the type of
electrolyser used, these are further classified into alkaline, polymer electrolyte membrane
(PEM) and solid oxide electrolysers. Alkaline electrolysis (AE), operating at a temperature of 80-100
degrees Celsius, is a well-established and widely commercial process. Electrolyser catalysts used for
this process include aqueous solutions of potassium hydroxides or sodium hydroxides.
Using polysulfonated membranes for splitting water molecules, PEM electrolysers are close to
commercialization. The development of solid oxide electrolysers is still in the works, but the
efficiency with the oxide is higher than that of alkaline electrolysers and PEM. This results in lower
electricity usage per kilogram of hydrogen produced. Usage of rare platinum group metals
like platinum, iridium, rhodium on cathode and anode makes the PEM electrolyser units expensive.
Alkaline (AE) and solid oxide electrolysers (SOE) are suitable low-cost alternatives. PEM electrolysis,
however, has the advantage of quickly reacting to the fluctuations typical of renewable power
generation. PEM water electrolysis systems also provide several advantages over the other two
electrolysis technologies, such as higher hydrogen production, compact design, and greater energy
efficiency.
Apart from the conventional hydrogen production pathways, biomass gasification is also gaining
traction—more so in countries with high availability of organic resources such as agricultural or
municipal solid waste. Gasification of biomass involves the incomplete combustion of feedstock at
high temperatures. This process produces combustible gases such as carbon monoxide (CO),
hydrogen (H2) and traces of methane (CH4). This mixture is known as syngas and can be separated
to produce hydrogen at scale. Biomass is available from various sources, such as animal wastes,
municipal solid wastes, crop residues, woody crops, agricultural wastes, sawdust, aquatic plants, and
many others. No colour code is yet assigned to define hydrogen from biomass.
Given an array of ways hydrogen could be produced, it has a wide range of applications and can
serve several end-use cases. It can facilitate cross-sectoral decarbonisation in industrial applications
of hard-to-abate sectors like steel, cement, fertilizers, petroleum refining and chemicals, with a
strong potential to decarbonise heavy mobility, power generation and function as an energy storage
medium.
Splitting water molecules, or the process of electrolysis, is one of the most promising pathways
towards green hydrogen. The hydrogen and oxygen produced from this process are 99.99% pure.
However, less than 4-5% of the world’s hydrogen is produced by electrolysis, given the nascency of
the technology

Fig 1: Schematic representation of PEM, Alkaline and SOEC Electrolysers

Though there are several types, an electrolyser fundamentally consists of two electrodes – cathode
(negatively charged), anode (positively charged) and a membrane. Electrolysis is the electrochemical
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reaction that occurs within the cell when electricity is passed from the anode to the cathode across
the membrane. This results in the splitting of the water molecules into hydrogen and oxygen.
Electrolysers used can be of different sizes. They range from small-scale laboratory levels to
production units that can produce several megawatts of electricity (MW).
Some examples of commercially operated electrolysers are electrolysers are Alkaline Electrolysers
(AE), Polymer Electrolyte Membrane (PEM), with Solid Oxide Electrolyser (SOE) and Anion Exchange
membrane (AEM) Electrolysers being at nascent stages.
Alkaline electrolysis is the most well-established and commercially available technology used
primarily by the fertiliser and chlorine industries. In this process, the two electrodes operate in a
liquid alkaline solution of either potassium hydroxide or sodium hydroxide. Electrodes are separated
by a membrane which allows transfer of hydroxide ions from one electrode to another. This process
operates at temperatures between 60 degrees Celsius and 80 degrees Celsius, a 1-30 bar pressure,
and an efficiency of about 70%. Metals such as nickel are used as electroactive cathode materials
since they have good corrosion resistance in an alkaline medium.
In Polymer Electrolyte membrane (PEM) electrolysis, water is electrochemically split into hydrogen
(cathode) and oxygen (anode) using renewable electricity, with polysulfonated membranes acting as
the proton conductor. PEM water electrolysis has great advantages such as compact design, high
current density (above 2A cm-2), high efficiency, fast response, and small footprint. In addition, it
can be operated at low temperatures (20–80 degrees Celsius) to produce ultra-pure hydrogen and
oxygen, which have a significant economic value. However, platinum group metals (PGMs) like
platinum, iridium, and ruthenium as catalysts make PEM electrolysis the most expensive electrolysis
method because of initial capital expenditure (CAPEX). However, it offers better flexibility. The
membrane-electrode unit – the heart of a PEM electrolysis cell – accounts for up to 70% of the total
cost. Material costs, including precious metals, account for up to 30% of the cost.
Solid Oxide Electrolysis (SOE) is based on an electrochemical process that uses a solid ceramic
material as the electrolyte to split the water molecule by transferring oxygen ions through a
conductive membrane. Solid oxide electrolysis operates at high pressure and temperatures (500–
850 degrees Celsius) in the presence of metals as the catalyst. This process is still developing and lies
between 3 and 4 on the technology readiness level (TRL) scale.
Anion Exchange membrane (AEM) works in an alkaline environment and is designed to allow only
anions to permeate and impermeable other gases. The method requires non-noble metals such as
nickel, cobalt, iron as a catalyst. It operates at a temperature range between 50 – 60 degrees Celsius
and pressure between 1-30 bar. The purity of hydrogen is 99.99%. The process is still at the R&D
level.

Fig 2: Types of Electrolysers

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Electrolysers for generating hydrogen using renewable electricity will further help power systems
become sustainable. Hydrogen as a form of electricity storage can help manage the vagaries of
electricity from renewable sources. Hydrogen also allows discoms to sidestep Duck curve challenges
from renewable sources, whereby hydrogen produced could be stored, acting as an energy storage
option, complementing the battery storage technologies. Integrating the electricity grid with
electrolysers for power to gas (P2G) and gas to power (G2P) applications through fuel cells will play a
crucial role in meeting rising demand, both in the form of electricity and gas as required, allowing for
deeper decarbonisation. With more than twenty countries announcing their national hydrogen
strategies and roadmaps, the electrolyser market holds the key to a cleaner future.
Given India’s vast organic waste and resource generation potential and the expected exponential
increase in the quantum of waste, deployment of biomass-based gasification technologies will play a
critical role in managing waste sustainably, further generating energy vectors like hydrogen, at lower
environmental costs. Alongside hydrogen from electrolysis, bio-hydrogen will play a pivotal role in
supporting India’s clean hydrogen ambitions in the near future, enabling creation of a circular
economy. In India, biomass accounts for almost 32% of the primary energy mix. Annually, about 750
million metric tonnes of biomass is available in the country and a surplus biomass of about 230
million metric tonnes is available from agricultural residues, which has a hydrogen production
potential of 7-8 million tonnes from dried feedstock. Further, urban India annually generates about
55 million tonnes of Municipal solid waste (MSW), which further has a hydrogen production
potential of 1.8 million tonnes. Currently over 800 biomass power and bagasse/non-bagasse
cogeneration projects aggregating to 10,170 MW capacity have been installed in the country for
feeding power to the grid.

What is biomass?

Biomass is the residue of organic matter that comes from living things and is composed of elements
such as Carbon, Hydrogen, Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Oxygen, etc. It is a widely available renewable
source of energy, which can be converted into useful biofuels, biopower, producer gas and
chemicals through the process of gasification, pyrolysis, combustion which involves heat, steam, and
oxygen.
Biomass feedstocks includes:

 Forestry wood and residues of wood such as chips, pellets, sawdust, firewood
 Agricultural energy crops and residues: corn stalk, rice hulls and stalks, wheat straw,
nutshells, soybeans, bamboo, straws of various pulses and cereals
 MSW: paper, cotton, food, wood wastes
 Animal manure

Biomass gasification (BG) is the thermochemical conversion of organic materials in closed,

pressurized vessels at high temperatures. It is a simple, reliable, and low-cost process, useful in
producing biofuel, hydrogen, syngas, and electricity. Biomass gasification does not add significantly
to the carbon levels as the biomass used for feedstock has already absorbed carbon dioxide from the
atmosphere (as seen in figure 1 below). Besides being carbon neutral, biomass gasification can
result in carbon negative by capturing carbon dioxide.

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 Figure 1.
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Biomass Energy CO2 balance Vs Fossil Fuel Energy CO2 balance
Based on the moisture content, it is divided into low moisture biomass and high moisture biomass.
Low moisture biomass can be used in gasification, combustion, and other thermochemical
conversion process while high moisture biomass can be used in biochemical conversion processes
such as fermentation and anaerobic digestion, involving microbes.
Gasification: In this process, the wet biomass is dehydrated by exposing to a low temperature of 150
degrees Celsius and then heated to a high temperature of 800 to 900 degrees Celsius, along with an
oxidising agent in a gasifier. The dry waste residue first undergoes degradation with increased heat
and then goes through the volatilization and break down of solid complex hydrocarbons into
combustible gas like syngas, hydrogen, tar, etc. Syngas can be treated to produce more hydrogen
and impurities can be removed by adsorption shift or membrane separation to get hydrogen with
99.9% purity. Temperature and biomass-oxidising agent’s ratio are key factors that affect the
performance of the process. Approximately 12-14 kilogram of biomass (bone dry) is required to
produce 1 kilogram of hydrogen. The efficiency of this technology is around 35-50%.

Figure 2 Schematic representation of the process of biomass gasification

Some of the commercially available gasifiers for biomass gasification are:

 Entrained flow gasifier

 Bubbling fluidizer bed gasifier
 Circular fluidizer bed
 Fixed bed gasifier
 Indirectly heated gasifier
 Plasma gasifier

Fixed bed gasifier also called as moving bed gasifier operates by traditional methods at 1000 degrees
Celsius. Fixed bed gasifier can be further classified into updraft and downdraft gasifiers. In updraft
one, the biomass is fed from the top and the gasification agent enters from the bottom, while in
downdraft, both biomass and the gasification agent are introduced from the top of the gasifier.
In the Fluidized gasifier, a gasification agent enters the bed from the bottom at a fast rate and exits
from the top. The main feature of this gasification is the uniform distribution of temperature in the
bed zone. Operating temperature is between 700-900 degrees Celsius. Three types of fluidized
gasifiers that are commercially available are circulating, bubbling and dual gasifiers.
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Plasma gasifier is mainly used for MSW biomass gasification. Gasifiers can work on low scales – as
low as 20 kilo Watt to well up to 2 mega Watt, with the current technology available.

Advantages and Disadvantage of Biomass Gasification

In terms of biomass gasification, the greatest advantage is the technologies’ ability to convert waste
into useful conventional energy vectors like electricity, hydrogen gas and biofuels, enabling creation
of a circular economy. Given that more than 80% of waste in India ends up in landfill, utilisation of
waste through gasification can also reduce the space required for landfilling, further reducing the
associated ground water pollution and the associated water-borne diseases. Given the range of
feedstocks the technology can process, it can also be deployed in areas where there is stubble
burning.
Gasification of biomass feedstock has high moisture content and low heating value when compared
to coal by volume, meaning that the output is not energy intense and can vary significantly given
feedstock’s heterogenous organic matter composition. Availability of locally accessible feedstock is
also a major operational barrier, whereby aggregation and transportation of the feedstock/waste to
the processing unit still remains a challenge. From a technical standpoint, formation of solid tar due
to cracking of pyrolysis volatiles can pose serious challenges like clogging of equipment and pipelines
reducing the efficiency of the entire system.

1.3.2. BIOMASS

Biomass is a broad term used to describe any organic material or resource which is derived from
plant or animal matter, and primarily used as fuel. This includes wood, food crops, grass and woody
plants, agriculture and forestry residues, and organic components of municipal and industrial
wastes. Biomass excludes organic material which has been transformed via geological processes to
fossil fuels such as coal, oil or natural gas.

Biomass can reduce dependence on foreign oil through production of biofuels and provide a boost
for agricultural and forest industries by turning low value wastes into high
value fuels, fertilizer or chemicals and electricity.
The chemical composition of biomass varies substantially, because of the broad range of materials
involved, but the main components are moisture, carbohydrates or sugars, lignin, and mineral
matter which becomes ash upon combustion or gasification.

The use of biomass to offset use of fossil fuels can lower greenhouse gas emissions. Burning biomass
for energy does create carbon dioxide; however, the same amount of carbon dioxide is recaptured in
future biomass growth. So as long as there is no carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere during
production of the biomass (growth, harvest, and processing), the process sums to zero net carbon
dioxide to the atmosphere. Also, if biomass is left to decompose naturally, or openly burned, a large
portion of the carbon in the biomass is converted to methane (CH 4). The percent of carbon in the
biomass which is converted to CH4 is fifty percent in the case of rotting, and five to ten percent in the
case of open burning. These processes are actually worse in regards to greenhouse gas emissions
than is biomass gasification, which converts nearly all of the carbon contained in the biomass to CO 2,
since CH4 is a much stronger greenhouse gas than is CO2.
The following table shows some of the common types of biomass and their chemical and physical
makeup and compares them with coal.
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Recognition of the value of biomass to supplement fossil fuel use and offset CO2 emissions is one of
the important drivers for NETL's Coal & Coal/Biomass to Liquids Program, which sponsors R&D in
technical areas which will increase biomass utilization in gasification and fuels synthesis. Some of the
relevant areas of R&D include feeding of biomass to gasifiers, and leveraging biomass to increase
hydrogen content of syngas as is required to facilitate efficient fuels synthesis.
Advantages of Biomass Gasification
There are two methods for converting biomass into high value end products: biochemical and
thermochemical conversion. Biochemical conversion involves the use of biological processes to
convert biomass into biofuels, chemicals and electrical power. In the case of ethanol production,
enzymes and/or chemical processes are used to extract sugars from the biomass, which can then be
converted to ethanol via fermentation. Thermochemical conversion, either gasification using less
than stoichiometric oxygen or pyrolysis (the gasification of biomass in the absence of oxygen), uses
heat and pressure to convert biomass to liquid fuels, chemicals and electrical power. Combustion is
an option for conversion of biomass to electrical power; however, the syngas produced by
gasification is much easier and economical to clean than are the exhaust gases produced by
combustion. This results in gasification providing better environmental performance, including a
cheaper method of capturing carbon dioxide. In addition, syngas produced by gasification can also
be processed into a variety of marketable products, where combustion is limited to electrical
production via the steam cycle.
The two main advantages that gasification has over biochemical conversion processes are the speed
with which the end product is produced (minutes for gasification compared to days for biochemical
conversion) and gasification's ability to extract the energy held in lignin, the harder structural part of
the biomass. Fermentation methods currently are unable to extract the energy stored in the lignin;
however, this does present the possibility of using gasification as a waste treatment method for
materials that cannot be fermented at a biochemical conversion facility.

Process Description
Through gasification, biomass is converted into a gas consisting of hydrogen, carbon monoxide,
carbon dioxide and other compounds by applying heat and pressure in the presence of steam and a
small amount of oxygen, typical of gasification of any organic material. Generally, biomass does not
gasify as easily as coal. Biomass produces hydrocarbon compounds in the gas, especially in the
absence of oxygen, requiring an extra step to remove them with a catalyst downstream of the
gasifier. The water-gas shift reaction is then used to convert some of the carbon monoxide with
water to form more carbon dioxide and hydrogen.
Most of the main gasifier types can be designed to handle biomass or a combination of biomass and
coal, but each has positives and negatives and the selection depends on the specific feedstock and
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the desired product or products. More detailed information on the subject of biomass/MSW
gasification and co-gasification of coal and biomass is available.
Challenges
A few obstacles exist before biomass gasification can obtain widespread market penetration. First, in
the case of oxygen-blown biomass gasification, costs associated with separating oxygen from the air
via cryogenic processes are very high, and could be reduced by continuing development of
new membrane separation technology. Membranes also hold the potential to lower costs associated
with purifying the process gas streams created by gasification. Finally, research on agriculture
practices and breeding efforts will increase the efficiency with which these materials can be used for
fuel in energy production and in turn decrease and stabilize their cost as well as promote industry
standardization of these materials.

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