One of the things that I take from my scientific background is how to look for alternative paths when your first hypothesis didn't work. I think in the world of Hydrogen and Power-to-X these days, we should do that.
In our case, I would come back to the basics and to the origin of all with the following questions and a possible checklist 😊 :
-Why are we looking into Hydrogen? Is it true that I cannot electrify my process? Do not generalize in either directions, meaning, for instance, that just because you are an industry or working in transport sector you are directed to a solution or another. Your circumstances matter a lot!
-What is your feedstock available? Depending if you have high availability of either renewable energy generation, biomass or even natural gas your method to produce clean hydrogen will be different. Although it makes sense that we try to favor Green Hydrogen (electrolysis+renewables) because of their least emissions, we should never forget our final aim: to decarbonize our world.
-What is your end-product and what other things are necessary to you to be able to decarbonize (again, your priority number one!)? In here, we will be thinking about carriers and green molecules (methanol, SAF, methane, ammonia), CO2 supply and logistics to move those molecules.
- What is the levelized cost of your final product? As early as possible, try to have a rough estimation of these costs as it will help you to identify where your main challenges are and if you should come back to point one again or not.
I will be very happy to read your suggestions in the comments below and your strategies when you hit walls or you think that there is no going further. I am sure that we can all learn from each others.