HPM
INDUSTRY
WATCH
“Industry believes the answer is green gas,
and its potential contribution to helping the
UK maintain its own supply of gas”
Is green gas the preferred
solution to meet UK heat demand?
Steve Sutton, technical manager at the Heating and Hotwater Industry Council, explores
hydrogen gas and poses the question: is the theory becoming a reality for government policy?
Behind every central heating
system there is years of innovation
designed to keep homes warm
and ensure comfort for the
occupants.
This innovation is rarely thought about
by the end user, driven only by the need
for heat and hot water.
Similarly, the modern-day boiler
purchased and fitted over 1.6 million
times per year, in the UK, is a result
of years of world leading research and
development.
Engineers, however, do recognise the
advancements in technology and take
an active interest in the products they
purchase and fit.
Many take the opportunity to attend
manufacturer’s training courses to ensure
they are fully up-to-date with the latest
technology. But how often do we think
about the complex system which lays
beyond product design – the gas grid?
The UK gas grid currently delivers
gas into the homes of over 85% of the
population, which is achieved through a
first-class distribution network developed
over many years.
With heat currently accounting for
50% of the total UK primary energy
demand, the gas grid is the UK’s hidden
asset. But there is increasing pressure
to meet international climate change
targets. Central to these obligations is the
decarbonisation of heat.
LACK OF APPETITE
There is little appetite to simply abandon
gas and start again with a new system, not
to mention the enormous costs involved.
Because of its existing reach, cost
efficiency and ability to store energy,
using the gas grid is key, and so greening
the gas that flows through the UK gas
network, whether with biogas, bioSNG, or
hydrogen, is the obvious solution.
Many of us in the industry are guilty of
being complacent when it comes to the
supply of gas, we can’t remember a time
without it and so we assume it will always
just be there. And we think it will, the
questions are what type of gas will it be,
and what investment is required?
Industry believes the answer is green
gas, and its potential contribution to
helping the UK maintain its own supply of
gas, which in turn means that we import
less from overseas, making it less carbon
intensive and more secure.
UK government has recognised the
potential contribution of green gas. As a
consequence, considerable resources are
being spent on ensuring better and more
efficient delivery of gas, particularly in the
research and development of biogas.
Very recently, however, hydrogen has
come to the fore. The Leeds H21 project
is an exciting study where the city of Leeds
would be changed over from natural gas
to hydrogen, with the hydrogen made on
Teesside, and the resulting carbon dioxide
buried deep under the North Sea. This
hydrogen could provide both heat and
transport.
CLIMATE WATCHDOG
The climate watchdog warned last year
that the country could not solely rely
on the power sector to meet targets for
reductions in emissions and that progress
on heating was stalled due to a lack of
clear direction in policy.
That said, the Department for Business,
Energy and Industrial Strategy recently
invested £25 million into ‘Hydrogen
for Heat’, a new research programme
to explore the use of hydrogen gas for
domestic heating.
This complex project, which is being
managed by Arup Consultants with
technical support from HHIC members,
Kiwa Gastec, includes defining a hydrogen
quality standard and developing and
trialing hydrogen fueled domestic
appliances.
HHIC and its members are supporting
this study together with the HyDeploy
project, which is looking at the
logistical requirements associated with
transitioning the UK gas network to
hydrogen.
It is also evaluating a shorter-term goal
of introducing up to 20% of hydrogen
produced from renewable technology in
to the UK gas supply without any changes
to the gas appliances installed in the UK
homes.
This is a possible first stage for the
use of hydrogen that allows for storage
of energy produced from renewable
technology, such as wind farms.
The HyDeploy project objective is to:
‘demonstrate for the first time that a
blend of hydrogen and natural gas can
be distributed and utilised safely and
efficiently in the UK distribution network
without disruptive changes for consumers’.
From a gas supply perspective, the
changes for installers will come with the
design and manufacture of hydrogen
ready appliances such as fires, cookers and
boilers.
Assessment of the suitability of meters
and internal pipe work in the home is
also part of the hydrogen projects along
with training requirements for the gas
engineer.
Green gas is now being recognised as
the preferred solution to meet UK heat
demand, which is seasonal and demands a
flexible supply.
There is no easy option for the UK, but
HHIC members are poised to deliver.
Hydrogen energy storage with renewable energy
sources, such as photovoltaic, and wind turbine
power plant
22 Heating & Plumbing Monthly | MAY 2018 | www.hpmmag.com
/www.hpmmag.com
