As part of climate change commitments, the United Kingdom is considering an incremental transition from natural gas to hydrogen for domestic heating, blending up to 20% of hydrogen (by volume) into the national gas network. We consider the possible impacts of this policy on nitrogen oxides (NOx) emissions, a minor waste by-product from combustion. A meta-analysis of changes in NOx emissions from hydrogen/natural gas blends used in gas burners is undertaken, with focus on mixtures between 5% and 20% v/v. Literature reports are highly variable: for a 5% hydrogen blend, changes in NOx emissions, when compared to burning pure natural gas, vary over the range –12% to +39%, with a mean change across 14 studies of +8%. These estimates required an important assumption to be made that, when not explicitly described, all literature data on changes in NOx emissions and/or concentrations were suitably corrected for the reduced energy density and heat output arising once hydrogen is added. A NOx increase can be rationalized through the increased adiabatic flame temperature generated from hydrogen combustion. The associated range of plausible damage costs of a 5% hydrogen blend is estimated to fall within the range –117 million GBP to +362 million GBP per year; 20% hydrogen (the maximum that could be accommodated with existing infrastructure) would lead to a change in emissions in the range –50 to +154% with a change in damage costs of between –467 million GBP and +1,146 million GBP per year. The mean change is estimated at 292 million GBP per year. For existing poor performing boilers, an economic case can be made for scrappage and replacement based primarily on NOx damage costs avoided. The response of older boilers to added hydrogen is a critical evidence gap that needs filling before further decisions on hydrogen as a heating fuel are made.
Hydrogen–diesel co-fuelling may reduce NOx and PM2.5 emissions if used in lower load construction machinery and HGVs. In high load applications such as electrical generators, emissions could be higher than pure diesel, unless further abated.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.