FUNDING: Environmental response to hydrogen emissions
The use of hydrogen as a substitute for carbon-containing fossil fuels, such as natural gas, would lead to reductions in carbon dioxide and methane emissions and therefore have a significant climate benefit. However, leakage of hydrogen into the atmosphere during its production, storage, distribution and use will affect atmospheric composition, reducing the climate benefit and impacting air quality. A 2018 literature review, funded by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), identified a number of evidence gaps which prevent accurate assessment of hydrogen’s environmental impact. These need to be urgently addressed to understand the implications of hydrogen use and enable unintended consequences of the delivery of a hydrogen economy to be minimised. This research programme aims to fill these through the following topics:
Topic A: increasing certainty of atmospheric composition, radiative forcing, and global warming potential of hydrogen emissions;
Topic B: addressing the role of the terrestrial hydrogen sink;
Topic C: impacts of hydrogen use scenarios on the atmosphere and impacts on air quality. Successful projects will report to policymakers as well as contribute to the writing of a programme-wide final synthesis report.
This report will bring together all of the research topics (for example, synthesising a summary workshop) which would be directly used by BEIS, Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, and Department for Transport, to inform policy decisions.
Deadline: 16:00 BST, 16 June 2022
To read the full funding programme visit the UKRI here.