Researching Cost Effective Ways to Produce More Ammonia

Although hydrogen is the most abundant element on Earth, molecular hydrogen is not found naturally in nature and needs to be produced from a feedstocks such as water, biomass or fossil fuels. And all these processes require energy. Alex Badgett researcher at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden, Colorado says they have developed a framework to evaluate the economics of hydrogen production.

“The most common way that hydrogen is made is using a steam methane converter, which relies on natural gas to make the hydrogen he says are some new emerging technologies that do not rely on natural gas and he explains why this new hydrogen analysis light production model is particularly important for ag fertilizer production you know; when we make ammonia which is you know, essential for an agricultural fertilizer right ammonia production and ammonia use as a fertilizer supports a lot of the agriculture worldwide today so it's a really important commodity. Now, the way that we make ammonia today conventionally uses that steam methane reforming of natural gas pathway to make hydrogen that I had mentioned ammonia or NH3has, you know, nitrogen and hydrogen in that chemical molecule. So we need hydrogen and plus nitrogen to make that ammonia.”

Badgett says if you can change the way ammonia is made, there is the possibility to change where it's made and integrate the use of renewable energy such as wind energy, which means more fertilizer plants could be located where currently there are not any plants. For more information do a search for h two a using the number two