HORIZON-JTI-CLEANH2-2023-1

ExpectedOutcome : Large scale economically viable hydrogen production is necessary to implement the ambition of the “Hydrogen Strategy for a climate-neutral Europe”. Improved integration of the electrolyser into industrial process or, more in general, into the energy system is still an open challenge. To achieve this goal, valorisation of by-products is of high importance to improve the business case of green H 2 production. Improved technological solutions will be developed during the project both in terms of integrated hardware as well as control strategies. Conventionally, an electrolyser vents by-product oxygen into the atmosphere and rejects ~30% of its electricity input as waste heat. The chemical and process industry sector is currently demonstrating that there is value in utilising also the oxygen and recovering the waste heat, but there is now a need to apply this approach to other industries such as, but not limited to non-energy-intensive industries (eg. wastewater treatment, fish farming, healthcare, etc.) and to assess the potential for establishing hydrogen hubs. The project will be expected to pave the way for further large-scale integration of electrolyser systems into either industrial applications, where the use oxygen and heat integration can improve efficiency and economics of green hydrogen use in industrial processes or into a coupled energy system where excess electricity can be converted into H 2 while waste-heat could be used, for example, to feed a district heating network. The project is expected to demonstrate in an operational environment an improved electrolysis technology at a scale of at least 15 MW. Project results are expected to contribute to all of the following expected outcomes: Innovation of the electrolyser technology and the balance-of-plant integration directly into the industrial process or energy system ensuring a wide commercial impact in at least one application sector; Development of techno-economic analysis of the performance of these systems showcasing the business case of the proposed solution at scale; Replicability of the solution for at least two different use cases; Establishment of optimal strategies to balance supply of O 2 or heat and H 2 with the specific application demand; Improving dynamic operation strategies and efficiency, with high durability and availability on-line reliability following the need of the industrial process; Footprint (area) reduction through direct integration with industrial process. The project should show no increased CAPEX and OPEX of the electrolyser system, independently on the chosen technology, increase operational reliability, improved integration within the industrial process, whilst improving the overall economics. SRIA KPIs for 2024 for the relevant technology used should be met. Scope : Utilisation of the by-product oxygen as well as simplification of the balance-of-plant through integration into the downstream process can improve the economics and the total cost of ownership of the electrolyser. This flagship topic should focus on improving efficiency of the electrolyser system as well reducing the footprint by optimising the electrolyser system-downstream process integration. Furthermore, the project should give insight into the effect of this integration on electrolyser degradation phenomena compared to a standard electrolysis system, if applicable. Proposals should address the following: Demonstrate an improved electrolyser (>15MW) with innovative balance-of-plant able to deliver hydrogen and oxygen and/or an optimised heat integration with the downstream process. The demonstration should operate for a minimum of 1 year (4,000 cumulated hours at nominal load); Demonstrate the scalability to multi-MW of the solution, including optimised control strategies and the economic benefit at scale including the impact on the final cost of the product; Include a plan for use of the installation after the project; Quantify the impact of t