New way to store hydrogen using lignin jet fuel discovered

A global crew of scientists has found a option to retailer and launch unstable hydrogen utilizing lignin-based jet gasoline that would open new pathways for sustainable vitality manufacturing.

In a brand new study within the Worldwide Journal of Hydrogen PowerWashington State College Professor Bin Yang and colleagues demonstrated {that a} sort of lignin-based jet gasoline they developed can chemically bind hydrogen in a secure liquid type. The analysis has many potential functions in fuels and transportation and will finally make it simpler to harness hydrogen’s potential as a high energy and 0 emissions fuel source.

“This new, lignin jet fuel-based technology could enable efficient, high-density hydrogen storage in an easy-to-handle sustainable aviation fuel, eliminating the need for pressurized tanks for storage and transport,” Yang mentioned.

For the research, researchers at WSU, Pacific Northwest Nationwide Laboratory, the College of New Haven, and Pure Assets Canada got down to handle one of many main challenges with utilizing hydrogen as a gasoline supply. The lightest factor’s low density and explosive nature make storage and transport technically difficult, inefficient, and costly.

The January article particulars how the analysis crew found the brand new hydrogen-storing course of utilizing chemical reactions that produced fragrant carbons and hydrogen from lignin jet gasoline—an experimental gasoline developed by Yang’s lab based mostly on lignin, an natural polymer present in vegetation.

“Hydrogen is a versatile energy carrier that could help the U.S. meet its targets for zero-emission mobility, integration of renewables, and decarbonization of industry,” Yang mentioned.

The invention factors to new makes use of for the lignin jet gasoline developed at WSU by Yang, who previously tested a new continuous process that creates the gasoline from agricultural waste. Experiments have shown that the sustainably produced gasoline may enhance engine efficiency and effectivity whereas shelling out with aromatics, the pollution-causing compounds present in typical fuels.

“This innovation provides promising alternatives for compatibility with current infrastructure and economic viability for scalable manufacturing,” Yang mentioned. “It could help create a synergistic system that enhances the efficiency, safety, and ecological benefits of both sustainable aviation fuel and hydrogen technologies.”

Subsequent, WSU researchers will collaborate with scientists on the College of New Haven to design an AI-driven catalyst that enhances and completes the reactions, making them extra environment friendly and cost-effective.