Last June CIDAUT had the opportunity to participate in several events around H2 at European and national level.
The Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Community and the ETSI de Minas y Energía of the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid organised the Hydrogen Storage Conference on 6 June in the auditorium of the ETSI de Minas y Energía to find out which technologies are being used in industry and which are being worked on in research centres to implement them in the near future.
After the official inauguration by the Rector of the UPM, the Director General of Energy Policy and Mines of MITERD and the President of Hydrogen Europe Research, the day was organised into two round tables. The first aimed to offer a more business-oriented view of current hydrogen storage technologies with the participation of representatives from Naturgy, Navantia, Airburs, Aciturri and Enagas. The second round table focused on Innovation in hydrogen storage. At this round table there were interventions by representatives of the CSIC, CIEMAT, the Aragon Hydrogen Foundation and the ETSI of Mines and Energy of the Polytechnic University of Madrid.
Continuing with the hydrogen events in Madrid, the following day the Hydrogen Europe Research (HER) General Assembly took place at the ETSII School of Industrial Engineering of the UPM. The meeting took place in a hybrid format, both online and in person, and was attended by more than 123 organisations from 29 countries across Europe. During the General Assembly, Hydrogen Europe Research provided an update on the activities of the Board of Directors, welcomed 23 new members, promoted its communication, policy and competence activities and presented the latest developments of the Clean Hydrogen Partnership. Luigi Crema, as chairman of HER, anticipated some future projects, such as the launch of a Working Group on Low TRL Research, and a Working Group on Research and Technology Infrastructures. CIDAUT attended in person and had the opportunity to exchange views and greet members in person.
Finally, and continuing with events organised by HER, CIDAUT presented part of its activity in the framework of H2 transport at the “Meet our members” event on H2 carriers, showing our projects and capabilities. This session took place on 31 May and was attended by many members of the association’s research community.
One of the most important challenges that the building sector faces is the reduction of energy consumption throughout the entire life cycle, i.e. from the manufacture of building elements, through their useful life, to their demolition. So much so that the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) estimates that buildings consume approximately 40% of the world’s energy, 25% of the world’s water and 40% of the world’s resources; moreover, buildings are responsible for approximately 1/3 of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions. In Europe alone, more than 220 million existing buildings – approximately 75 per cent of the building stock – are energy inefficient indeed, many of them rely on fossil fuels for heating and cooling.
In view of the construction sector is responsible for more than 35% of the EU’s total waste generation, one of the main promising measures to tackle the high CO2 emissions of this sector and move towards a more circular economy is to encourage the use of secondary materials.
Faced with this situation, the CIDAUT Foundation takes part in PROBONO project, a European project in which the implementation of the circular economy in this sector is essential. In this line, the CIDAUT Foundation is going to use recycled materials in insulation and structural applications to achieve more sustainable and efficient buildings. This will avoid the use of materials of fossil origin as well as introduce recyclable and lightweight materials.
One of the strategies for reducing the heating and cooling demands is to focus on improving the insulation properties of building envelopes, in addition to enhancing the efficiency of appliances or modifying citizen life styles. The first action plays a decisive role, as it can lead to significant improvements with a short payback period. This action is aligned with the European strategy of introducing more efficient and environmentally friendly materials. This is why the PROBONO project is working on the implementation of insulating as well as sustainable materials and processes.
The presentation of the H2MetAmo project: Technologies, materials and processes for small-scale production of renewable hydrogen carriers (methane and ammonia) for distributed use took place on 14 March in the Aula Romero of the University of Burgos. H2MetAmo deeps into the technologies, materials and processes for small-scale production of renewable hydrogen carriers (methane and ammonia) for distributed use.
Firstly, the day included a conference on the industrial challenge of green hydrogen by the general manager of Hiperbaric, Andrés Hernando. This was followed by the round table: Development of the hydrogen market. From production to storage, distribution and uses. It was attended by representatives from companies such as Adisseo, Bridgestone, Campofrío, Aciturri Areonáutica, Capital Energy and entities such as FAE or the Hydrogen Association of Castilla y León. All of them discussed the challenges and opportunities around hydrogen. After coffee, the project partners took the floor and the round table focused on presenting the project activities and the development of technologies. On behalf of CIDAUT, the head of the Energy Area, Alfonso Horrillo, was in charge of presenting the activities that will be carried out on our part focused on the design, manufacture and testing of new reactors for obtaining methane and ammonia for distributed use.
The H2MetAmo project, coordinated by the University of Burgos, combines the efforts of the four public universities of Castilla y León with the support of CIDAUT, CARTIF and numerous regional and national companies, as well as the Castile and Leon Hydrogen Association (H2CyL).
This project is funded by the Regional Government of Castilla y León (Junta de Castilla y León) and by the Ministry of Science and Innovation MICIN and the European Union NextGenerationEU / PRTR. C17.I01.P01.S21. This programme is part of the Complementary Plans for Research and Development with the Autonomous Communities in R&D&I actions, of Component 17, Investment 1 (C17. I1) of the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan.
The IV Energy Engineering Congress (iENER) organized by the AEE Spain Chapter took place on April 20 and 21 in Valencia. After the success of the first three editions, iENER has become an event of national and international importance for energy professionals where the top experts meet and assess the “general picture”, new technologies, regulatory developments and current trends in the energy sector.
Taking advantage of this forum in the energy sector, José Ignacio Domínguez Carrero, head of CIDAUT Energy projects, showed the advantages of using ammonia as a carrier of renewable hydrogen to promote the decarbonization of the economy.
CIDAUT is currently working on several projects related to the use of renewable ammonia. Among these projects, the collaboration with REDEXIS in the ZEPPELIN[1] project stands out. CIDAUT participates in the research of alternative processes for storing green hydrogen in the form of ammonia carrying out a comparative study with other forms of hydrogen storage and dimensioning a process of storage of renewable hydrogen in the form of ammonia adapted to the fixed production and use needs.
Within the HYDROMAR[2] project, CIDAUT participates in industrial research on the logistics chain of maritime transport of hydrogen in different formats, including ammonia. Finally, CIDAUT is part of the NEWBUNKER2project in which where it is in charge of the analysis of the state of the art in maritime propulsion systems with alternative fuels to conventional fuels, such as ammonia and hydrogen, identifying the different supply modalities (bunkering) of these fuels depending on the storage system and power generation system installed on board..
[1] This project, with the file number MIG-20211076, has been subsidized by the Center for Industrial Technological Development (CDTI), within the framework of the 2021 call for the MISIONES SCIENCE AND INNOVATION Program (Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan), and has the support of the Ministry of Science and Innovation. The aid granted to the project is financed by the European Union through the Next GenerationEU Fund.
[2] This project has been supported by the Ministry of Industry, Energy and Tourism, within the call for Innovative Business Groups (AEI).
The city of Valencia has hosted the several activities that Gasnam-Neutral Transport has organized on the occasion of its General Assembly, in which CIDAUT as a member of the Board of Directors has actively participated. This emblematic city, which hosts a multitude of innovation projects related to renewable gases, and the facilities of the Port Authority of Valencia, have been the ideal setting to bring together about 150 professionals who shared views on what are the key levers to promote the use of biomethane and hydrogen and decarbonize the different modes of transport.
The activities, which took place on April 19 and 20, included the General Assembly and the organization of the various working groups that actively participate in the association and whose work is of vital importance. The sessions provided an opportunity to discuss the use of biomethane in transport, the development of the hydrogen refuelling station network and the promotion of innovation projects in maritime transport. They were attended by various institutions, including the director of Ecological Transition of the Port Authority of Valencia and representatives of the Directorate of Climate Change of the Generalitat Valenciana, the Ministry for Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge, the Ministry of Transport, Mobility and Urban Agenda and the IDAE. All of them highlighted the importance of public-private collaboration in the search for common objectives.
These sessions showed, among others, result of the HYDROMAR[1] and NEWBUNKER projects promoted by the AEI GASNAM and in which CIDAUT participates as a partner.
On January 26, the General Assembly of the Spanish Hydrogen Technological Platform (PTe H2) took place.
During the assembly, the current situation of the hydrogen sector and its challenges and strengths were described. It was concluded that it is going through a great moment and represents a key economic growth opportunity for Spain.
Likewise, the coordinators and vice-coordinators of the Working Groups that make up the Platform presented the activities carried out during 2022 and the challenges and lines of action proposed for this year. José Ignacio Domínguez Carrero, as coordinator of the group for the uses of hydrogen in mobility and vice-coordinator of the group for the uses of hydrogen in industry, participated on behalf of CIDAUT.
In addition, during the event, the first corporate changes implemented were shown, such as the new logo and the creation of a LinkedIn group.
