Technology designed in Canada is transforming bioethanol into green hydrogen using a catalytic process. In the very near future, a smaller version of this system will be connected to a truck and tested.
The brains behind the magic, Dr. Inder Pal Singh, has a modular, container-sized system in the market that offers a net-zero solution for transportation fuel and electricity generation.
Singh – CEO and founder of Edmonton-based SBI Bioenergy, and chief scientist and director of Fresno, Calif.-based TO Viridi Group – is working to secure a fuel cell chassis from an OEM to test his vehicle-sized product.
Michael Lewison, president of TO Viridi, said that several discussions are underway to support the project.
“We recognize that hydrogen will be a fuel of the future,” Singh said.
Hydrogen fueling mesh network
Lewison added that the company aims to build a hydrogen fueling mesh network in California and expand across North America. Ethanol as a fuel source is plentiful, with 45 million gallons available per day in the U.S.
They company’s HyEn+ product – powered by Singh’s Golu software – uses existing transportation infrastructure and ethanol stored at ambient temperature in ordinary, unpressurized tanks.
“The catalyst is the secret sauce,” Lewinson said.
A 40-ft. x 8-ft. (12m x 2.4m) HyEn+ unit, connected to a 12-meter ethanol tank, can produce 1,250 kg of hydrogen per day. It can fuel 20 to 30 Class 8 trucks a day, he added.
In contrast, more than 42 football fields of solar panels and a 1.5-acre electrolyzer will produce the same amount of hydrogen, Lewiston noted.
The hydrogen can be utilized to fuel commercial vehicles or be stored in fuel cells and converted to electricity. For example, fueling trucks and providing power to a depot or warehouse.
Power and food for First Nations
Singh is in talks with First Nations communities to use his technology for remote power generation, and food and water production.
One modular unit that produces 1.25 tons of hydrogen can generate enough biogenic carbon dioxide to support more than a 10-acre commercial greenhouse, he explained. Water is a byproduct, solving drinking water issues in some areas, he added.
“People in Northern communities are paying a lot of money for food. This gives them power, food and water sovereignty,” Singh said.
‘40% cheaper than diesel’
These communities presently generate power using diesel. “We calculated it will be about 40% cheaper than diesel if you produce electricity by making hydrogen using our process and our fuel cell to produce electricity,” he added.
Diving deeper into the chemistry, Singh said that methanol is easier to split into hydrogen, but there is no green methanol available. Seeking a green product, he focused on ethanol.
“It was difficult to split ethanol, it took us about seven years and tens of millions of dollars. Fifteen people worked on this project,” he said. “This is my life’s savings and earnings.”
Singh added that the Edmonton facility has everything needed to develop a technology from scratch and bring it to market. This includes design, development, fabrication and manufacturing.
