Transitioning to hydrogen
Green hydrogen is very important for the transition towards a clean, affordable energy supply and a CO2-neutral industry.
Hydrogen can be used to produce high temperature heat for the industry, low temperature heat for the built environment and for the production of electricity. Furthermore, it can be used as fuel for transportation. Green hydrogen can be made by using clean electricity from renewable energy sources, such as the sun and wind, to electrolyze water.
Hydrogen in Brainport Eindhoven
Currently, almost all hydrogen that is being produced, is ‘grey’. It is extracted from the reaction between ‘high-pressure-steam’ and methane, which also causes CO2. The challenge is to produce hydrogen in a sustainable and affordable way. This requires the know-how and machinery from the High Tech Systems and Materials sector (HTSM) and a high-tech way of thinking, while taking account of standardization and the ability to scale up technologies. The HTSM sector in Brainport Eindhoven has the necessary know-how and expertise in the field of electrochemical conversion & materials, measurement and detection technology, manufacturing techniques and cost-efficient manufacturing. That is why Brainport Eindhoven is not focusing on large-scale production of hydrogen, but rather on the improvement of the technology to also enable other regions to produce green hydrogen at a large-scale and in a cost-efficient way.
In addition, small-scale initiatives for the production of hydrogen have been set up in the region to ensure the technology can also be used in the built environment and in the industry (such as the Green H2UB and on the Automotive Campus). Furthermore, a hydrogen corridor is being developed with sufficient locations to tank hydrogen between Rotterdam – Brainport – Venlo. This corridor is an important prerequisite for the supply of hydrogen to the heavy-duty vehicles that are being manufactured in the region by DAF, VDL en E-trucks Europe.
