MOTIVATION

For the energy turnaround we need CO2-free hydrogen in the medium to long term in the full range of its potential: As an energy source, as a raw material in the chemical industry, and for low-emission production processes, for example in the steel industry.

Hydrogen and the gaseous and liquid energy carriers generated from it are needed particularly in those areas of application that cannot be supplied with electricity directly in the long term (exclusively) or only at great expense. This applies in particular to heavy-duty transport, shipping and air traffic and in the passenger car sector for use over long distances. Hydrogen also enables the decarbonization of long-lasting CO2 sources via carbon capture and utilization (CCU), for example in the cement industry. With CO2-free hydrogen, the energy turnaround can thus also succeed in certain industrial and transport sectors.

In combination with the worldwide falling costs of generating electricity from renewable energies, CO2-free hydrogen can now become an important component of the global energy turnaround. It will make an important contribution to achieving the climate protection goals of the Paris Agreement.

Hydrogen holds great opportunities for Germany as a business location and of course the EU. The German economy for example is already an international pioneer in the development and export of hydrogen and power-to-x technologies. This role must be maintained in the upcoming market ramp-up of production and acceptance. Research and innovation are indispensable as a basis for international competitiveness. The production of components for the production, use and supply of hydrogen will then contribute to regional value creation and strengthen the companies active in these fields. Hydrogen thus stands for economic growth and job creation.

With the development of a National Hydrogen Strategy the Federal Government of Germany wants to pave the way to become a leading international supplier of hydrogen technologies – likewise the EU. An important first step is the establishment of a domestic hydrogen market, as a solid domestic market is indispensable in global competition. At present the production and use of CO2-free energy carriers is not yet economically viable. In order to advance the further development of the technologies and to achieve a rapid cost degression, innovations from the laboratory and early market phase must now be brought quickly into application and implemented on an industrial scale. In addition to a competitive production of CO2-free hydrogen, a corresponding sales market is also needed. Priority is to be given to applications in industry and transport in which the use of CO2-free hydrogen is close to economic viability and in which no major path dependencies arise.

Internationally, countries such as Australia, China, Japan and Korea are strongly promoting the topic of hydrogen. In order to keep pace, the transformation process of the German economy must be pushed forward vigorously. The course must now be set for the market ramp-up of hydrogen technologies in order to open up national and international market opportunities for CO2-free hydrogen.

VISION

The network aims to be an effective instrument, especially for small and medium-sized companies, to establish themselves successfully and permanently in the developing, cross-border hydrogen market. The decisive factor is not always to offer the best application solution, but also the time of market entry. With regard to international competition, the international HyEcon network is intended to act as an efficient tool.

TARGETS

In order to achieve a broad application of the technologies, the approaches that have so far only been demonstrated in research and on a laboratory scale must be pursued and expanded.

The main goal of the network is to initiate research and development projects for concrete applications and to coordinate and support the use of public funding.

In the ZIM innovation network "HyEcon", companies and research institutions cooperate in order to carry out these developments jointly and faster.

The network brings together competences and mediates development partners, users and potential customers, which have to be ideally coordinated for the efficient use of systems and components. The aim here is to develop a significant boost for the development of the project partners through international cooperation projects.

In order to achieve the mission statement, vision, the above-mentioned goals and to make the above-mentioned research and development work possible, the network promotes networking and exchange between companies and research institutes from different fields of work on an international scale. It makes targeted use of its pioneering position, international market knowledge and market positioning.

The network takes on research and development topics for which there are high chances of success and market opportunities. It stands for application solutions in the stationary, mobile and transportable area.

CONTENTS

1. Storage/storage mediums

• Pressure storage
• Absorption storage (metal hydride)

2. Adjacent technologies

• Processes

• • Compression of hydrogen (electrochemical)
  • Alternative hydrogen carriers (ammomia, methanol, synthesis of higher carbon compounds)

• Components & component optimization

• •  High pressure applications
  • High temperature materials

• Loading/unloading infrastructure
• Scaling
• Marketing - business case development - operator models

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