Seminar - David Ginter

Dr. David Ginter: "Near-Term Green Hydrogen Production for Use in Renewable Aviation Fuels and Specialty Chemicals"

The second seminar in the series from the Midwestern Hydrogen Partnership featured Dr. David Ginter, Engineering Specialist - Energy and Transportation Technology at the Caterpillar Technical Center in Mossville, IL. 

Bio
Dr. Ginter earned his bachelor's degree in chemical engineering from Cornell University and a PhD in chemical engineering from the University of California, Berkeley.

Abstract
It is estimated that affordable green hydrogen will help accelerate adoption of proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMFCs) more than affordable PEMFCs will help accelerate adoption of green hydrogen. In view of this, prioritizing investment in green hydrogen over investment in PEMFCs appears logical. (In-flight investments in PEMFCs should carry the technology through Tech Readiness gates.) Hydrogen is higher value as a chemical precursor (est. ~$10/kg) than as a transportation fuel (<$5/kg), thus indicating the likely better route for payback of green hydrogen investments.

An attractive and flexible business case is to use the green hydrogen to upgrade soy oil to renewable jet/diesel. The process has high hydrogen mass leverage (~30x) and energy leverage (>10x) to a high value transportation-ready fuel. Additionally, plentiful, affordable, and renewable Midwest resources (soy oil, wind, nuclear) can be applied, and the process can be scaled to power needs.

The roster of participants includes technology providers and manufacturers that can support widespread deployment across the Midwest. Potential product fuel off-takers are abundant in the Midwest: airports, railyards, transport hubs, barge transport, Defense installations, etc., and they would benefit from the reduced greenhouse gas profile over trucking in petroleum derived fuels. Distributed deployment of this application will reap benefits for rural and urban/disadvantaged communities. Green hydrogen in excess of that used for renewable jet/diesel can be fuel for reciprocating and gas turbine engines in combined heat and power applications.

Pursuing the idea would lead to gathering of partners for shaping of and response to government and other funding opportunities, such that hydrogen in the Midwest will be more available at lower cost.