Doosan Corporation demonstrates the production of green hydrogen with steam from nuclear power plants

[Courtesy of Doosan Group]

SEOUL – Doosan Corporation, the holding company of the South Korean Doosan Group, will be participating in a major project to demonstrate a green hydrogen production facility based on solid oxide electrolyzer cell technology that would use steam from a nuclear power plant in an eastern port city.

A solid oxide electrolytic cell (SOEC) runs in regenerative mode to achieve electrolysis of water by using a solid oxide or ceramic electrolyte to generate hydrogen gas and oxygen. Solid oxide electrolysis cells are based on high temperature electrolysis, typically between 500 and 850 degrees Celsius.

The Korea Institute of Energy Research, the Korea Institute of Machinery and Materials, the Nuclear Energy Policy Center of Seoul National University and KEPCO E&C are involved in the project to build a green hydrogen production complex in Uljin, about 223 kilometers southeast of Seoul. Doosan Corporation is responsible for developing SOEC technology.

For its long-term goal, Doosan Corporation intends to use SOEC technology for Small Modular Reactors (SMRs), which have been studied to overcome the limitations of traditional light water reactors and provide less on-site construction, greater containment efficiency, and increased safety.

“SOEC technology is more efficient than alkaline water electrolyte or polymer electrolyte technology, which has already been commercialized. We will be producing a large amount of clean hydrogen by using SOEC technology, ”Lee Hae-won, an official head of the hydrogen business for Doosan Corporation, said in a Dec. 6 statement.

The operating temperatures of SOEC are similar to those of a solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC). In September 2021, Doosan Corporation completed development of a 10 kilowatt SOFC system with the world’s highest power generation efficiency.

SOFC uses conventional gas like hydrogen as the main fuel source and is considered to be the most stable and energy efficient among its fuel cell brethren. Since the SOFC has a high output compared to its size, the fuel cell system is ideally suited for driving mega-heavy machinery such as oil tankers and giant tunnel boring machines.

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