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Sustainable Hydrogen Production with Negative Carbon Emission Through Thermochemical Conversion of Biogas/Biomethane

Author

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  • Bin Wang

    (School of Energy, Power and Mechanical Engineering, North China Electric Power University, Beijing 102206, China
    Institute of Engineering Thermophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
    These authors contributed equally to this work.)

  • Yu Shao

    (Institute of Engineering Thermophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
    University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
    These authors contributed equally to this work.)

  • Lingzhi Yang

    (Institute of Engineering Thermophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
    International Research Center for Renewable Energy & State Key Laboratory of Multiphase Flow in Power Engineering, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an 710049, China)

  • Ke Guo

    (Institute of Engineering Thermophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
    Department of Thermal Science and Energy Engineering, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei 230027, China)

  • Xiao Li

    (Institute of Engineering Thermophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
    University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China)

  • Mengzhu Sun

    (Institute of Engineering Thermophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
    University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China)

  • Yong Hao

    (Institute of Engineering Thermophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
    University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China)

Abstract

Biogas (primarily biomethane), as a carbon-neutral renewable energy source, holds great potential to replace fossil fuels for sustainable hydrogen production. Conventional biogas reforming systems adopt strategies similar to industrial natural gas reforming, posing challenges such as high temperatures, high energy consumption, and high system complexity. In this study, we propose a novel multi-product sequential separation-enhanced reforming method for biogas-derived hydrogen production, which achieves high H 2 yield and CO 2 capture under mid-temperature conditions. The effects of reaction temperature, steam-to-methane ratio, and CO 2 /CH 4 molar ratio on key performance metrics including biomethane conversion and hydrogen production are investigated. At a moderate reforming temperature of 425 °C and pressure of 0.1 MPa, the conversion rate of CH 4 in biogas reaches 97.1%, the high-purity hydrogen production attains 2.15 mol-H 2 /mol-feed, and the hydrogen yield is 90.1%. Additionally, the first-law energy conversion efficiency from biogas to hydrogen reaches 65.6%, which is 11 percentage points higher than that of conventional biogas reforming methods. The yield of captured CO 2 reaches 1.88 kg-CO 2 /m 3 -feed, effectively achieving near-complete recovery of green CO 2 from biogas. The mild reaction conditions allow for a flexible integration with industrial waste heat or a wide selection of other renewable energy sources (e.g., solar heat), facilitating distributed and carbon-negative hydrogen production.

Suggested Citation

  • Bin Wang & Yu Shao & Lingzhi Yang & Ke Guo & Xiao Li & Mengzhu Sun & Yong Hao, 2025. "Sustainable Hydrogen Production with Negative Carbon Emission Through Thermochemical Conversion of Biogas/Biomethane," Energies, MDPI, vol. 18(7), pages 1-17, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jeners:v:18:y:2025:i:7:p:1804-:d:1627384
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Capa, A. & García, R. & Chen, D. & Rubiera, F. & Pevida, C. & Gil, M.V., 2020. "On the effect of biogas composition on the H2 production by sorption enhanced steam reforming (SESR)," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 160(C), pages 575-583.
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