Geologic Hydrogen – More than a Fairy Tale

This story keeps on developing, and the implications make one’s head spin.

Engie:

In  some  countries,  strange  circular  areas can be seen where, compared to their surroundings, vegetation is much less dense or even non-existent. Even today  no  one  has  come  up  with  a  convincing explanation for their origin and so these so-called “fairy circles” are often associated   with   stories   and   legends.   Surprisingly, a lot of these circles are also the site  of  hydrogen  gas  emissions,  which  means  that this gas that we manufacture using various processes  as  part  of  the  energy  transition  is  actually naturally present below ground.
In  some  countries,  strange  circular  areas can be seen where, compared to their surroundings, vegetation is much less dense or even non-existent. Even today  no  one  has  come  up  with  a  convincing explanation for their origin and so these so-called “fairy circles” are often associated   with   stories   and   legends.   Surprisingly, a lot of these circles are also the site  of  hydrogen  gas  emissions,  which  means  that this gas that we manufacture using various processes  as  part  of  the  energy  transition  is  actually naturally present below ground.
If certain hypotheses as to the exact mecha-nisms  at  play  are  still  the  subject  of  debate,  certain clues suggest that water plays a major role in the natural hydrogen cycle. This can be observed  at  underwater  faults  where  water  contributes to the oxidization of ferromagne-sian  minerals  (in  the  newly  created  and  still  extremely hot rocks) and the resulting produc-tion of hydrogen. This rapid chemical reaction takes place at a relatively shallow depth.

EuroActiv:

While carrying out work to check the risk of firedamp pockets in the abandoned mines of the Lorraine region in May, La Française d’Énergie (FDE) discovered a large deposit of natural hydrogen, igniting hopes that it could be a game changer in Europe’s energy transition.

For years, researchers and businesses in the private sector have been looking for rare natural hydrogen, otherwise known as native or white hydrogen, due to its potential as a clean and renewable energy source.

“If confirmed, this would be the largest potential natural hydrogen discovered to date in Europe,” Philippe de Donato, co-director of research at the GeoRessouces laboratory at the University of Lorraine, told France 3 Grand-Est at the end of May.

Indeed, it is believed that the Lorraine basin could contain 46 million tonnes of natural hydrogen – equivalent to half the world’s current hydrogen production – and enough to contribute to the EU’s decarbonisation objectives significantly.

Natural hydrogen is naturally present in the Earth’s crust and mantle, explains Isabelle Moretti, a researcher at the University of Pau and the Pays de l’Adour. It can be found in several places: “at ocean ridges, in the mountains with ophiolites, remnants of ancient oceanic rocks, but also in iron-rich rocks,” she said in an interview with L’Usine Nouvelle in June 2021.

The resource, which can be harnessed when it degases on the earth’s surface or when extracted with boreholes, has been on scientists’ radars for some time. But a broader interest in the resource arose as world nations sought to replace fossil gas with a clean-burning fuel.

Unlike hydrogen produced from natural gas or electrolysis, its natural counterpart requires no water and little energy to extract while taking up very little land.

In addition, its production is not subject to periods of instability and is even renewable, provided that “we adapt the rate of extraction to the rate of generation, as we do with hot water vapour in geothermal energy,” Moretti added.

Indeed, the Earth continuously produces natural hydrogen through chemical reactions that are mainly related to oxidation of ferrous iron minerals.

All these advantages make natural hydrogen a much cheaper resource than hydrogen produced from electrolysis. The price of natural hydrogen is estimated at €1 per kilo, while renewable hydrogen currently reaches €6, according to a position paper published in February at the request of the European Commission by the Earth2 initiative, a French body bringing together industry and research groups.

All these arguments mean that “this would be the lowest-carbon and cheapest hydrogen in the world,” said Mikaa Mered, a hydrogen specialist and professor at Science-Po Paris who sits on the expert committee of the Forum Hydrogen Business for Climate conference in France.

Huge potential in France

What’s more, natural hydrogen resources generated on Earth are plentiful, says Nicolas Pélissier, chairman of French start-up 45-8 Energy, which specialises in helium and natural hydrogen.

According to his estimates, these would greater than the 90 million tonnes of hydrogen currently produced worldwide, which is 98% fossil-based.

“In France, it is possible to imagine quantities such that the country could be an exporter,” Mered told EURACTIV. France could eventually produce three million tonnes a year, taking into account the resources of the Lorraine basin and the potential currently being studied in the Alps, New Caledonia and the Pyrenees, he added.

This represents just under half of the 6.5 million tonnes of low-carbon hydrogen that the country hopes to produce by 2030.

But resources exist elsewhere in Europe, including Spain, Germany, Kosovo, Iceland, Finland, Sweden, Poland, Serbia, Norway, Ukraine, Russia and Kazakhstan.

Beyond Europe, Mali has been operating a well since 2014, while Namibia, Brazil, Canada and even the United States, which is currently drilling a well in Nebraska, are showing interest