The New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO), Toshiba Energy Systems and Solutions Corporation (Toshiba ESS), Tohoku Electric Power Co., Inc., and Iwatani Corporation yesterday announced that Fukushima Hydrogen Energy Research Field (FH2R), which had been under construction in Namie town, Fukushima Prefecture since 2018, has been constructed with a renewable energy-powered 10MW-class hydrogen production unit, the largest class in the world, at the end of February.
Renewable energy output is subject to large fluctuations, so FH2R will adjust to supply and demand in the power grid in order to maximize utilization of this energy while establishing low-cost, Green hydrogen production technology.
Hydrogen produced at FH2R will also be used to power stationary hydrogen fuel cell systems and to provide for the mobility devices, fuel cell cars and buses, and more.
FH2R uses 20MW of solar power generation facilities on a 180,000m2 site along with power from the grid to conduct electrolysis of water in a renewable energy-powered 10MW-class hydrogen production unit, the largest in the world.
It has the capacity to produce, store, and supply up to 1,200 Nm3 of hydrogen per hour (rated power operation).
Hydrogen is produced and stored based on the hydrogen demand and supply forecasting system’s forecasts for hydrogen demand in the market.
Adjustments to balance supply and demand in the power grid can be made by adjusting the hydrogen volume produced by the hydrogen production unit to meet the power grid adjustment needs of the power grid control system.
The most important challenge in the current stage of testing is to use the hydrogen energy management system to achieve the optimal combination of production and storage of hydrogen and power grid supply-demand balancing adjustments, without the use of storage batteries.
To address this challenge, testing will begin to identify the optimal operation control technology that combines power grid demand response with hydrogen supply and demand response, using units of equipment that each have their own different operating cycles.
Hydrogen produced at FH2R will mainly be transported in Hydrogen tube trailers and hydrogen bundles, to be supplied to users in Fukushima Prefecture, the Tokyo Metropolitan Area, and other regions. ■
An upper level high pressure system is expected to continue aiding well above average and potentially dangerous temperatures throughout the West into the first full weekend of September.