HNEI > R&D > Hawaii Hydrogen Power Park

The U.S. Department of Energy (U.S. DOE) has promoted the vision that the transition to a hydrogen economy will begin with small-scale Distributed Generation (DG) systems fueled by hydrogen. In addition to providing stationary power, these systems may also have the capability of dispensing hydrogen for hydrogen-fueled vehicles. The U.S.DOE has named these hydrogen DG and transportation fueling systems "Hydrogen Power Parks". The hydrogen supply for hydrogen power parks can be produced by a variety of locally available energy sources including electrolyzers powered by electricity generated from renewable energy sources such as hydro, wind, geothermal and solar, or various sources of biomass, or reformation of biofuels (Figure 1).

In October 2002, Hawaii's Department of Business, Economic Development & Tourism (DBEDT) was awarded a U.S. DOE contract to develop a hydrogen power park project in Hawaii. DBEDT in turn contracted the University of Hawaii's Hawaii Natural Energy Institute (HNEI) to implement the project. Power Park provides the opportunity of operating an integrated hydrogen energy system, measuring operational results, and evaluating technical and economic performances in a real-world environment. The results of these evaluations are being used to identify areas that require further research, development and validation. Power Park also increases public awareness of the potential of hydrogen for the generation of electricity and for transportation applications. Initial testing of various full scale and subscale components has been completed. Future phases include systems installed at Kahua Ranch and the Hawaii Gateway Energy Center.

Kahua Ranch Test Site

Kahua Ranch located on the Big Island has excellent wind and solar resources and is being used to test wind-to-hydrogen and solar-to-hydrogen Power Park hydrogen generation systems. This site is home to a small village renewable energy power system that was installed by the Pacific International Center for High Technology Research (PICHTR). The objective of the PICHTR project was developing and testing the use of wind and solar power to power small villages as found in many parts of the Pacific. In the original configuration, the energy from wind turbines and photovoltaic arrays was stored in a large industrial battery. The battery then supplied AC power via a converter to power lights and electrical appliances at the ranch.

In the Kahua Power Park demonstration we are using the electricity generated by the wind turbine and solar array to power an electrolyzer and make hydrogen. The hydrogen is stored without further compression at low pressure (approximately 175 psi) in a large propane tank. When electricity is needed the hydrogen is supplied to a fuel cell to produce electrical power. The hydrogen can also be used to fuel an internal combustion engine which would power an electric generator.

Layout

Figure 2 describes the different locations at Kahua Ranch showing a general diagram of the final installation. Concrete pads have been poured in the hydrogen room and the gas tank location, and a fire wall surrounds the hydrogen storage tank which acts as a heat shield between the hydrogen storage tank and the facility. Fences also protect the area to keep out horses, sheep, and unauthorized humans.

System Description

As shown in Figure 3, all components are connected to a 48VDC Bus Bar via DC/DC or AC/DC converters. The wind turbine initially designed for 240VDC supply has been modified to produce 48VDC. The PV field has been rewired for 48VDC supply. 24 battery cells have been connected to allow 48VDC short term electricity storage. Built up and tested at the FC test facility, the hydrogen storage system includes an EH! electrolyzer (48VDC unit producing 0.2 Nm3/h of hydrogen delivered at 12 Bar), a low pressure hydrogen storage tank 1,150 gallons, 15 bar), and a Plug Power Gencore 48VDC Fuel Cell system. Gas and electrical management panels have been built. Sensors, contactors and valves are connected to a Data Acquisition and Control System (DACS).

Hawaii Gateway Energy Center

HNEI has leased a new laboratory building and office space located at the Hawaii Gateway Energy Center (HGEC) located on the West Coast of the Big Island at the Natural Energy Laboratory Hawaii Authority (NELHA) campus adjacent to the Kona airport (Figure 2). The Gateway has been awarded a LEEDS platinum designation - one of only 25 in the world. HNEI will use this facility to conduct the testing and validation of distributed energy resources (DER) technologies, and continue to validate hydrogen technologies under the continuation of the Power Park project. HNEI has received new funding of $1.6 million ($800k from US DOE and $800k from the State of Hawaii Hydrogen Investment Capital Special Fund) to build a hydrogen fueling station. While current planning calls for the use of electrolyzers powered by renewable electricity to produce hydrogen, HNEI will also investigate other options including the use of ethanol reformers and gasification technology.

Future Plans - The Hawaii Hydrogen Highway

$1.6 million secured for a hydrogen fueling station at the HGEC;
Hawaiian Electric Company has submitted a request to the PUC to supply renewable energy at a special rate;
Teamed with Volcanoes National Park to support hydrogen plug-in hybrid shuttle buses;
Teamed with venture capital partners to develop a Hawaii Hydrogen Highway (H3) on the Big Island.

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