Trans-Canada and trans-Atlantic distribution of bio-hydrogen using formic acid as the carrier

该团队正在开发一种工艺，使用生物甲酸(BioFA)作为液态氢载体，从生物质中生产绿色氢(H2)燃料或绿色合成气(一氧化碳和氢的混合物)。这一工艺是德国团队和加拿大团队合作开发的，德国团队正在完善OxFA工艺以及在实验室规模将生物FA转化为H2或合成气步骤，加拿大团队正在开发具有商业意义的详细工艺。木材、甜菜、柳枝草或其他加拿大生物质通过德国合作者开发的新的“OxFA”工艺转化为生物FA。浓缩生物FA以液体形式储存，无毒且易于搬运，易于运输。例如，BioFA可以从艾伯塔省西南部的甜菜或不列颠哥伦比亚省北部的木材制成，然后运输到育空地区的偏远社区或安大略省的城市中心。在其最终目的地，生物脂肪酸可以很容易地通过低温催化反应转化为氢气，然后燃烧发电，用作燃料电池汽车的燃料，或用作工业化学品。在所有三种情况下，生命周期的温室气体排放量都非常小。此外，生物FA比氢气更容易、更安全、更便宜地储存和运输(这是相当危险的)，并且与压缩的氢气相比，可以在相同的体积内携带更多的能量。这解决了与发展新的氢经济相关的几个跨加拿大问题。加拿大和德国的跨大西洋贸易还有一个特殊的好处：德国进口了大量的木屑，他们在发电厂里燃烧这些木屑作为动力。事实上，加拿大绝大多数的木片都是为了这个目的出口到欧洲的。这一过程将极大地扩大加拿大木材在德国的市场，因为生物FA可以从加拿大的木屑中制造出来，然后用于发展氢经济，而不需要储存氢气。这项工作的总体目标是为横跨加拿大和德国的分销的上游和下游组件设计最佳系统。

The team is developing a process to produce green hydrogen (H2) fuel or green syngas (carbon monoxide and H2 mixtures) from biomass, using biogenic formic acid (bioFA) as a liquid H2 carrier. This process is developed in partnership between the German team that is perfecting the OxFA process as well as the conversion of bioFA to H2 or syngas steps at the lab scale, and the Canadian team that is developing the detailed processes at commercially relevant scales. Wood, beets, switchgrass, or other Canadian biomass is converted to bioFA through the new "OxFA" process developed by the German collaborator. Concentrated bioFA is stored as a liquid, is non-toxic and easy to handle, and can easily be transported. For example, bioFA can be made from beets in southwest Alberta or from wood in northern B.C., and then transported to remote communities in the Yukon or urban centers in Ontario. At its final destination, bioFA can be readily converted into H2 through a low-temperature catalytic reaction and then combusted for power generation, used as fuel for a fuel cell automobile, or used as an industrial chemical. In all three cases, the lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions are very small. Furthermore, bioFA is easier, safer, and cheaper to store and transport than H2 gas (which is quite dangerous), and more energy can be carried in the same volume when compared with compressed H2. This solves several trans-Canadian problems related to developing a new Hydrogen Economy. There is also a special benefit for the Canada-Germany trans-Atlantic trade: Germany imports great deals of wood chips which they burn for power in power plants. In fact, the vast majority of Canada's wood chips are exported to Europe for this purpose. This process would greatly expand the market for Canadian wood in Germany, because bioFA can be made from Canadian wood chips and then used to develop their hydrogen economy with no H2 storage required. The overall goal of this work is to design the best systems for both upstream and downstream components for both trans-Canadian and German distribution.