Feasibility Issues for Hydrogen Production
Competition is pushing the price of hydrogen down
- Steam reforming of natural gas ~ $5/GJ
- Gasification of hydrocarbon fuels ~ $8/GJ
- Comparison to $1/gal gasoline ~ $8/GJ
Electrolyzer Plant Equipment adds ~ $3/GJ to the price of H2
The remainder of the cost of hydrogen (COH) is directly proportional to the input COE
As electrical demand grows and capacity is reduced, there will be no cheap off-peak electricity (10 to 30 mills/kWh)
Fusion COE would have to be in the range of 30 mills /kWh to competitively produce hydrogen in today’s market
If price of gasoline is $2/gal, hydrogen production with fusion would be competitive with COE values around 60 mills/kWh