Ammonia Cracking Membrane Reactor

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Program:
REFUEL
Award:
$1,524,606
Location:
Peekskill, New York
Status:
ALUMNI
Project Term:
06/09/2017 - 06/08/2021

Technology Description:

Bettergy will develop a catalytic membrane reactor to allow on-site hydrogen generation from ammonia. Ammonia is much easier to store and transport than hydrogen, but on-site hydrogen generation will not be viable until a number of technical challenges have been met. The team is proposing to develop a system that overcomes the issues caused by the high cracking temperature and the use of expensive catalysts. Bettergy proposes a low temperature, ammonia-cracking membrane reactor system comprised of a non-precious metal ammonia cracking catalyst and a robust composite membrane. A one-step cracking process will be used to convert ammonia into hydrogen and nitrogen, with the hydrogen passing through the selective membrane leaving only nitrogen as the byproduct. If the team is successful, the conversion efficiency will be higher than conventional methods because the hydrogen is removed from the system as it is being produced. The low-temperature reactor will provide greater reliability, ease of operation, and cost effectiveness to hydrogen fueling stations. The team’s technology could also be applicable for stationary fuel cell systems and the semiconductor, metallurgy, chemical, aerospace, and telecommunications industries.

Potential Impact:

If successful, developments from REFUEL projects will enable energy generated from domestic, renewable resources to increase fuel diversity in the transportation sector in a cost-effective and efficient way.

Security:

The U.S. transportation sector is heavily dependent on petroleum for its energy. Increasing the diversity of energy-dense liquid fuels would bolster energy security and help reduce energy imports.

Environment:

Liquid fuels created using energy from renewable resources are carbon-neutral, helping reduce transportation sector emissions.

Economy:

Fuel diversity reduces exposure to price volatility. By storing energy in hydrogen-rich liquid fuels instead of pure hydrogen in liquid or gaseous form, transportation costs can be greatly reduced, helping make CNLFs cost-competitive with traditional fuels.

Contact

ARPA-E Program Director:
Dr. Grigorii Soloveichik
Project Contact:
Dr. Zhong Tang
Press and General Inquiries Email:
ARPA-E-Comms@hq.doe.gov
Project Contact Email:
ztang@bettergy.com

Partners

SUNY University at Buffalo

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Release Date:
04/26/2016