Hydrogen can be produced by reforming bio-derived liquids such as sugars, ethanol, or bio-oils or through gasification or pyrolysis of biomass feedstocks. In the near term, distributed hydrogen production technologies such as bio-derived liquid reforming may be the most viable renewable hydrogen pathway due to their lower capital investment requirements (including hydrogen transport and delivery infrastructure). The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Hydrogen, Fuel Cells and Infrastructure Technologies Program (HFCIT) is cost-sharing research to address technical challenges and lower the cost of producing hydrogen from renewable liquid fuels as part of HFCIT's Hydrogen Production Subprogram.

DOE Technical Targets The DOE-HFCIT technical targets for distributed production of hydrogen from bio-derived renewable liquids will be presented. The targets represent the goals for DOE-sponsored R&D and will be used to measure the progress of sponsored research.

Bio-Derived Liquids to Hydrogen Distributed Reforming Pathways and Feedstocks

Potential bio-derived liquid reforming pathways and feedstocks will be reviewed. Ethanol has the highest theoretical hydrogen yield per pound of feedstock. Based on current hydrogen yields from ethanol steam reforming and the potential biomass resources available domestically (1 billion dry tons annually), ethanol reforming could supply nearly 64 billion kg H2 annually on an energy content basis. This represents approximately 45% of our 2005 gasoline consumption. Key reforming technical challenges and the status of hydrogen recovery and purification will be discussed.

DOE Bio-Derived Liquids to Hydrogen Distributed Reforming Working Group

DOE kicked off a “Bio-Derived Liquids to Hydrogen Distributed Reforming Working Group” on October 24, 2006. The Working Group will provide a forum for effective communication and collaboration among active participants in the DOE HFCIT cost-shared research directed at distributed bio-liquid reforming. Working group efforts will be discussed.