Hydrogen and Marine Energy Market 2020 Roundup

DOE releases its Hydrogen Program Plan Published in November, the DOE Hydrogen Program Plan provides a comprehensive strategic framework for the Department’s hydrogen research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) activities. It includes input from the offices of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Fossil Energy, Nuclear Energy, Electricity, Science, and the Advanced Research Projects Agency – ­Energy, and reinforces DOE’s commitment to enabling progress in hydrogen technologies in the United States.

A Look Back at 2020 for Hydrogen and Fuel Cells

As 2020 draws to a close, this is a great time to reflect on a few examples of progress and exciting news items from the Hydrogen and Fuel Cells Program over the course of the year:

• Approximately $64 million went to 18 projects and will enable new markets for H2@Scale through HFTO, as well as collaborations with EERE’s Advanced Manufacturing and Vehicle Technologies Offices. Specific activities will spur large-scale hydrogen utilization at ports and data centers and across industrial sectors like steel-making.
• A successful collaboration between DOE’s Nuclear Energy Office and HFTO resulted in a $26 million investment that will support two efforts to demonstrate nuclear power to hydrogen through electrolysis.
• The research community, government, and the private sector came together in a number of workshops, including the H2@Airports Workshop, to identify research and development (R&D) gaps, opportunities, and next steps to advance hydrogen and fuel cell technologies at airports. Examples included unmanned aerial vehicles, aircraft, and ground support applications.
• Collaborations among industry and other federal agencies were strengthened through various mechanisms, including a memorandum of understanding to work with industry to collect and validate data, as well as a multi-agency announcement from DOE, the Department of Defense, and the Department of Homeland Security to support the H2Rescue truck for disaster relief missions.
• Increased global interest in hydrogen and fuel cell technologies was evident during the first virtual International Partnership for Hydrogen and Fuel Cells in the Economy (IPHE) Global Forum, which reached nearly 3,000 people and brought together government ministers and other leaders to discuss how they see hydrogen as a key part of their energy strategies. IPHE’s Education and Outreach Working Group also launched the first of its kind Early Career Network run by students, postdocs, and early career professionals interested in hydrogen and fuel cells. The Network has members from over ten countries.

DOE EERE Commemorates National Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Day

EERE commemorated National Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Day during the week of October 8 by featuring an H2@scale blog, an article on hydrogen and fuel cells progress, an H2IQ Hour on H2@Scale demonstration projects, a Facebook Live featuring EERE Assistant Secretary Daniel R. Simmons, as well as tweets from Energy Secretary Dan Brouillette and Deputy Secretary Mark Menezes.

HFTO Launches Two Consortia to Advance Fuel Cell Truck and Electrolyzer R&D

EERE launched the Million Mile Fuel Cell Truck (M²FCT) and the H2NEW consortia to advance fuel cell truck and hydrogen production R&D. This announcement built upon EERE’s intention to invest up to $100 million over five years, subject to appropriations, to reduce the cost of fuel cells for trucks and of electrolyzers for hydrogen production.

EERE and the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs to Collaborate on Hydrogen Technologies

EERE and the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy’s Directorate General for Climate and Energy issued a statement of intent to collaborate on collecting, analyzing, and sharing information on hydrogen production and infrastructure technologies. This collaboration will leverage existing international partnerships, including the IPHE, Clean Energy Ministerial, Hydrogen Energy Ministerial, and Mission Innovation, which will allow real-world data from hydrogen applications to be gathered to guide both organizations’ future hydrogen R&D activities.

Funding Opportunities and Requests for Information

Deputy Secretary Menezes Announced $33M Funding Opportunity During Hydrogen Station Tour

On December 10, 2020, Deputy Secretary of Energy Mark Menezes announced a $33M funding opportunity to support innovative hydrogen and fuel cell R&D, infrastructure supply chain development and validation, and cost analysis activities. The announcement took place while Deputy Secretary Menezes was touring a new hydrogen station in Washington, DC – the H2Refuel H-Prize winner (SimpleFuel) small-scale station. Projects selected under this funding opportunity will support EERE’s H2@Scale vision and leverage capabilities at DOE National Laboratories through close collaboration with the M2FCT and H2NEW consortia. Also included are cost analyses and heavy-duty fueling infrastructure R&D. Concept papers are due on January 15, 2021, and full applications are due on March 8, 2021.

Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Topics included in SBIR/STTR Funding Opportunity

The FY2021 Phase I Release 2 Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Phase I Funding Opportunity covers various hydrogen and fuel cell topics, including fuel cell and hydrogen infrastructure components for heavy-duty applications, as well as approaches to minimize boil-off in hydrogen storage systems. Letters of intent are due January 4, 2021, and full applications are due on February 22, 2021.

EERE HFTO Funds Proposals for National Labs to work with Private Sector on H2@Scale

HFTO issued a request for proposals for collaborative projects addressing two priority areas: hydrogen fueling technologies for medium- and heavy-duty fuel cell vehicles and technical barriers to hydrogen blending in natural gas. A key project selected is called HyBlend, in which National Labs will work with industry to enable the blending of hydrogen in natural gas pipelines and for various end-use applications.

Webinars and Workshops

H2IQ Hour Webinar Recordings and Presentations Are Available for Viewing

HFTO hosted monthly H2IQ Hour webinars to share information about the status and progress of DOE-funded hydrogen and fuel cell projects and initiatives. Recent H2IQ Hour topics included H2@Scale demonstration activities, how advanced manufacturing efforts address needs in the hydrogen and fuel cells field, and examples of how integrating electrolyzers and the grid can enable more stable energy systems. Recordings and presentation slides are available on the H2IQ Hour webinar page

Webinar Highlighting Findings from DOE RFI on Medium- and Heavy-Duty Truck R&D

On December 15, 2020, EERE hosted a webinar to discuss key findings from its recent Request for Information (RFI) on medium- and heavy-duty transportation technology, including hydrogen fuel cell trucks. The RFI and webinar discussions help identify gaps and barriers to commercializing new technologies and inform DOE’s R&D and competitive funding strategy into the next 10 years. Webinar recordings are available soon after the live webinar.

Studies, Reports, and Publications

DOE National Labs Publish Three H2@Scale Reports on Resource Analysis and Potential

Three H2@Scale technical reports focus on resource analysis as well as supply and demand potential for hydrogen. Analysis indicates that the demand potential for hydrogen in the U.S. may be 2 to 4 times higher than today’s volumes of 10 million metric tons.

Visit our website to access technical information about hydrogen and fuel cells in documents such as technical and project reports, conference proceedings and journal articles, technical presentations, and links to other websites.

DOE Hydrogen and Fuel Cells Program Record Documents Cost of Hydrogen from Electrolysis

This HFTO program record compiles various analyses and references to document the cost of hydrogen from existing polymer electrolyte membrane electrolysis technology at $5 to $6 per kilogram of hydrogen at electricity prices of $0.05/kWh to $0.07/kWh.

Program Record Estimates Hydrogen Production Cost from High-Temperature Electrolysis (HTE)

This HFTO program record estimates the high-volume, untaxed hydrogen cost ranging from $2/kg H2 to $6/kg H² based on industry input on HTE system performance, as well as the capital, operational, and feedstock costs. The total installed high-volume capital cost, for example, ranged from approximately $360/kW to $520/kW for different analysis scenarios.

Program Record Estimates Hydrogen Delivery and Dispensing Cost

This HFTO program record establishes the levelized unit-cost of hydrogen at stations, which varies based on the hydrogen delivery method. For liquid tanker-based stations, hydrogen cost is $11/kg at 450 kg/day and $8/kg at 1,000 kg/day stations. For tube-trailer gaseous stations, hydrogen cost is $9.50/kg and $8/kg at 450 kg/day and 1,000 kg/day stations, respectively.

Program Record Updates DOE Automotive Fuel Cell Targets

This HFTO program record updates the DOE ultimate targets for fuel cell system specific power, stack specific power, and stack power density to 900 W_net/kg, 2,700 W_gross/kg, and 3,000 W_gross/L, respectively.

Program Record Estimates Early Market Transportation Fuel Cell Cost

This HFTO program record estimates the cost of a commercially available automotive fuel cell system to be $165/kW at a manufacturing volume of 3,000 systems/year, which is representative of the manufacturing volumes of commercial fuel cell electric vehicles in the 2018 timeframe.

National Laboratory and Principal Investigator Achievements

EERE Announces Winner and Runners Up of the Hydrogen and Fuel Cells Postdoctoral Recognition Award

Eun Joo Park from the Los Alamos National Laboratory is the winner of DOE’s inaugural Hydrogen and Fuel Cells Postdoctoral Recognition Award for outstanding research on polymer electrolytes used in fuel cells, electrolyzers, and flow batteries. Luigi Osmieri from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and Guosong Zeng from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory also received recognition as runners up for their research in hydrogen and fuel cells.

Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies Office Announces FY 2020 Program Awards

Every year, HFTO presents awards to individuals from partner institutions for outstanding contributions to the overall efforts of the DOE Hydrogen and Fuel Cells Program, as well as for achievements in specific technical areas. Learn more about the 2020 award recipients.