Theme 1: Hydrogen Production
If the hydrogen economy is to be developed within the constraints of the Kyoto protocol, hydrogen needs to be produced from renewable sources. Hydrogen can be produced by the dark fermentation of carbohydrate rich biomass. This will therefore also contribute to the UK's obligations under the EU Biofuels Directive (2003/30/EC).
During Phase 1, UK-SHEC have identified a range of fermentable energy crops as the most suitable substrates for farm-scale biohydrogen fermentation in a yearly crop rotation. The research demonstrated the fermentative production of hydrogen from these diverse and unrefined substrates for the first time. As well as assessing the net energy generated by this process, a preliminary Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) and Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) were also completed.
This research was carried out in the form of 3 workpackages (WP):
WP 1.1a: Fermentative production of hydrogen
WP 1.1b: Reactor construction
WP1.1c: Pilot Plant