PNNL

Hydrogen is seen as an enabler for decarbonization of the U.S. economy, and is being proposed for aiding in deep penetration of renewable energy sources in the electric grid, replacement or mixing with natural gas for industrial and chemical uses, and for other applications where batteries cannot meet performance needs. About 10 million metric tons of hydrogen are used annually in the U.S. today, primarily for petroleum refining and ammonia production. While hydrogen is great, it’s not great for everything. 

In his talk, Jamie will review the scale of the challenge for decarbonization, provide an overview on hydrogen and fuel cells, and discuss where green hydrogen may make technical and economic sense. He will review the Department of Energy’s Hydrogen Earthshot which has the goal of providing clean hydrogen at $1 per gallon of gasoline equivalent in one decade. Jamie will review the potential scale of hydrogen use in decarbonizing the U.S. economy, and the technical challenges that need to be overcome for clean hydrogen production. Finally, he will describe how PNNL is providing national leadership in the development of a hydrogen infrastructure.

The Pacific Northwest National Laboratory’s Community Science and Technology Seminar Series was launched to help the general public better understand and explore how science transforms our world. For more information about this seminar and upcoming seminars, call (509) 375-6871.