During a closing conference in Brussels, a European research consortium presented the results of the TITAN project, a Horizon Europe project that directly converts biogas into hydrogen and solid carbon. This approach can offer biogas producers an additional revenue stream, particularly in locations where connection to the gas grid is expensive or technically challenging.
Biogas consists largely of methane and carbon dioxide. Normally, it is burned or upgraded to biomethane that can be fed into the gas grid. TITAN takes a different route. In a reactor heated by microwaves, the biogas is not burned but separated. This creates two usable products: a gas stream rich in hydrogen and carbon in solid form. Because the reactor heats the gas directly and no separate, energy-consuming separation step is required, the project partners believe the process can ultimately generate energy rather than incur costs. An additional process step then extracts even more hydrogen from the gas stream.
From computational model to working reactor
The project began with calculations and models on paper and worked step by step towards a real, working installation. At the closing conference on June 22, the researchers demonstrated that they had taken that step, with a reactor that managed to convert biogas in a test setup. In technical terms, the technology has thereby been validated at Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 5, the level at which something demonstrably works in a realistic test environment but is not yet operating on a commercial scale. The project runs from September 2022 to September 2026 and is led by the French research institute CNRS.
Two destinations for the carbon
The released hydrogen can help make industry and heavy transport more sustainable, while utilizing residual streams that already exist. TITAN is investigating two uses for the solid carbon. The first is use as a soil improver to make agricultural land healthier and more fertile. The second is the production of silicon carbide, a very hard material used in abrasives, brake parts, and electronics, among other things. This carbon thus provides a second source of income alongside the hydrogen. And because the carbon is captured in solid form instead of being released into the atmosphere as CO2, it simultaneously serves as a way to store carbon for the long term.
According to the project partners, the potential is significant. TITAN anticipates a production of 0,6 megatons of green hydrogen in 2030, rising to nearly 4 megatons per year from 2045. This would amount to approximately 237 megatons of avoided CO2 by 2045. These are expectations dependent on further scaling up; several more years are needed for widespread commercial application. The European Biogas Association, one of the partners, views hydrogen from biogas as a complement to the existing market for biomethane and also discussed societal acceptance and the place of this technology in European policy at the conference.
The researchers point out that the reactor can be built in various sizes, from small installations that convert biogas into electricity locally to larger factories for hydrogen and chemical feedstocks. Which setup is profitable depends on the scale and infrastructure at a location. For biogas producers who currently supply mainly biomethane, this opens up a second potential market for their gas.
In the video below, researchers Marilena Radoiu and Valentin L'hospital (Microwave Technologies Consulting) and project coordinator David Farrusseng (IRCELYON) explain the results of the project.
Sources: European Biogas Association, TITAN closing conference , TITAN project page , European Commission (CORDIS)
Image: video still from the YouTube video Titan Project
