CO_2 Capture and Storage: Possible Bridging Function for a Future Hydrogen Economy?

摘要

In view of the future vision "hydrogen economy", gasifying coal and/ or reforming natural gas for the centralized generation of hydrogen close to suitable carbon dioxide storage options could be a possible interim solution to the long-term goal of emission-free hydrogen generation. By spatial separation of electricity generation into fossil hydrogen production with CO_2 capture, hydrogen-fuelled electricity generation near to consumers would be nearly emission-free (apart from CO_2 also other air pollutants). The construction of an adequate infrastructure would be necessary for this proposed path. The location of hydrogen production plants with decoupled electricity generation and the necessary infrastructure is an important aspect. In the past, essential criteria for conventional fossil electricity generation were proximity to consumers as well as the location-bound availability of energy carriers. Transport routes have to be kept short in order to avoid losses and thus additional costs. For a conceivable fossil electricity production with CO_2 capture and storage (CCS) the existence of storage options will play a key role for plant location. For Germany as a rule, carbon dioxide storage options are not located near existing power plants or exploration sites so new power plant locations could be taken into account. The focus of the contribution will be the analysis of potential fossil electricity generation options with CO_2 capture and resulting transport tasks for decoupled hydrogen/ electricity generation. The paper comprises a selection of a systems analysis concerning future energy supply under conditions of CO_2 capture and storage funded by the German Federal Ministry of Labour prepared in the period from 2004 to 2005.