Cummins and its partners announced that HyBalance, one of Europe’s most advanced hydrogen production facilities, will continue producing hydrogen for customers across Europe. HyBalance was established in 2018 as a pilot, and the pilot was completed in September of 2020, demonstrating strong results.

“Hybalance is a leading example to other customers and communities that the future of power can be dependable using our water electrolysis capabilities,” said Amy Adams, Vice President Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Technologies at Cummins Inc. “As the first-of-its kind, the facility demonstrated that PEM electrolysis technology is highly dynamic and flexible in terms of power fluctuations, and is able to balance the electrical grid to better utilize renewable energy. This is a tremendous step forward in Cummins’ capabilities and continues to build our reputation as a hydrogen technology leader across multiple applications.”  

HyBalance was funded by Fuel Cells and Hydrogen 2 Joint Undertaking and the Danish EUDP program, and led by Air Liquide, Cummins (through its Hydrogenics Business), Centrica Energy Trading, LBST and Hydrogen Valley.

Located in Denmark, the HyBalance proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolyzer supplies hydrogen to customers of Air Liquide, a world leader in gases, technologies and services for Industry and Health, and Air Liquide operates the site. The project demonstrated that producing hydrogen to store energy at a large scale – including electricity from renewable sources – is technically and economically viable. In addition, the facility has validated the PEM electrolysis technology as highly dynamic, able to cope with fast power ramps up and down. Since 2018, the 1.2-megawatt PEM electrolyzer has produced 120 tons of hydrogen, enabling 24/7 delivery of 60 tons of hydrogen to an industrial customer and demonstrating its ability to balance the electricity grid. The remaining 60 tons have been delivered to other customers, including hydrogen stations for fuel cell taxis in Denmark’s capital city, Copenhagen. 

Hydrogen makes other forms of renewable energy more viable by providing efficient and portable storage of electricity. Sourcing power from wind turbines, the PEM electrolyzer can economically convert wind energy to hydrogen and oxygen in a process called water electrolysis. Hydrogen is produced when electricity prices are low which is typically the case when wind energy is abundant. Then, the hydrogen can be stored or transported easily to customers. 

“Air Liquide is proud to have contributed to the success of the HyBalance project. Clean hydrogen being a major key lever for a carbon neutral world, the plant will keep delivering low-carbon hydrogen to customers,” Pierre-Étienne Franc, Vice-President for Hydrogen Energy, Air Liquide. “The facility is already a model for larger scale PEM electrolyzers around the world including another Air Liquide plant located in Bécancour, Québec with a 20 MW electrolyzer, to start soon.”

Electrolyzers enable the production of hydrogen, which can be used by industrial clients or stored and used to power applications, including trains, buses, trucks and more. Cummins has hundreds operational in the field. Water electrolysis produces no harmful emissions — only oxygen and hydrogen. And when hydrogen is used to power a fuel cell electric vehicle, only pure water is released. 

Denmark is on the cutting edge of clean power. In 2019, 47% of electricity consumed in Denmark came from wind power, compared to just 6.6% in the U.S. By converting electricity into hydrogen, the HyBalance project helps balance the grid and allows excess electricity to be stored and used at a later time in the industrial sector or as clean fuel for transportation. The facility in Denmark is capable of supplying a fleet of more than 1,000 fuel cell electric vehicles.

In September 2019, Cummins acquired the Hydrogenics Corporation, which provided Cummins with PEM fuel cells as well as alkaline and PEM electrolyzers used to generate hydrogen. Cummins continues to demonstrate the technical and economic viability of producing and storing hydrogen at scale, and this first-of-its-kind electrolyzer marks an exciting success for both Cummins and hydrogen fuel cell technology at large. The HyBalance project has paved the way for PEM electrolyzers around the world, including the world’s largest PEM electrolyzer—Cummins 20-megawatt PEM electrolyzer located in Bécancour, Québec. The PEM electrolyzer, which is being built in partnership with Air Liquide, will be the largest of its kind in the world with an annual hydrogen output of approximately 3,000 tons.

But the recent focus on hydrogen  - and its place in helping decrease the negative impacts of climate change and decarbonizing the power sectors - has caught the attention of many journalists and thought leaders from around the world. And rightfully so. 

Is hydrogen the future? Only time will tell, but as we highlighted during our recent Hydrogen Day virtual event, we certainly think the future looks bright for hydrogen and its place in helping build a green economy. 

Here’s a roundup of some of the latest headlines making waves in the hydrogen fuel cell space.  

Diesel engine giant Cummins plans Hydrogen future with trains coming before trucks, Forbes 

Diesel engine giant Cummins plans hydrogen future—with trains coming before trucks https://t.co/vk7gbc70Xt by @alanohnsman

— Forbes Tech (@ForbesTech) November 17, 2020

Cummins is starting to ditch diesel for hydrogen, Fox Business

Why Jim Cramer is watching Cummins stock, TheStreet.com 

Cummins outlines the future of Hydrogen technologies, Transport Topics 

Cummins believes in the future of Hydrogen. Nikola stock is the one that jumped, Barron’s 

Cummins: New technologies on the horizon, H2View 

.@Cummins hosted its virtual #Hydrogen Day yesterday. Catch up on what Amy Adams, Vice-President of #FuelCell and Hydrogen Technologies, had to say as she showed the company’s green product portfolio & discussed some of the industries each product serves.https://t.co/15fXsOfCLw

— H2 View (@h2_view) November 17, 2020

Cummins lays out vision for a hydrogen future, Truck News 

Cummins sees $400M in revenue from making hydrogen in 2025, Freightwaves 

Cummins drives ahead with hydrogen, International Construction 

Cummins outlines hydrogen plans, Just Auto

Cummins looks to the future, details hydrogen power development plans, Fleet Equipment Magazine

Cummins hydrogen power systems and electrolyzers aiming at trains first, Hydrogen Fuel News

Cummins hydrogen electric power systems and electrolyzers aiming at trains first https://t.co/SCERcHO5hZ #hydrogenfuelnews #hydrogenpower #hydropower #hydrotrain #renewabletrain #hydrotransport #transportation #cummins #cumminstrain #h2trains

— Hydrogen Fuel News (@hydrogenfuelnew) November 24, 2020

Cummins details hydrogen power development plans, Engine Builder

Cummins reveals road map to Carbon-free Hydrogen economy, HDT Truckinginfo

To decrease the negative impacts of climate change and decarbonize the power sector, renewable technologies like wind and solar have emerged as key ingredients to providing a solution. But integrating these intermittent energy sources into the power grid can be challenging. This is where electrolyzers come. Hydrogen makes other forms of renewable energy more viable by providing efficient and portable storage of electricity. Electrolyzers enable the production of hydrogen, which can be used by industrial clients or stored and used to power applications, including trains, buses, trucks and more, and Cummins has hundreds operational in the field.  

Take wind turbines as an example. Electrolyzers can economically convert wind energy to hydrogen and oxygen in a process called water electrolysis. Water electrolysis produces no harmful emissions — only oxygen and hydrogen. Hydrogen is produced when electricity prices are low which is typically the case when wind energy is abundant. Then, the hydrogen can be stored or transported  to customers. Hydrogen’s potential for storing and transporting energy makes it a key enabler of a global transition to renewable energy. 

Cummins made a bold entry into the hydrogen economy in September 2019 with the acquisition of Hydrogenics, a global hydrogen fuel cells and electrolyzer technology manufacturer, and Cummins continues to make quick progress in innovating new products and applications in the hydrogen space, including three electrolyzers that are making an impact:  

HyBalance – Denmark: Supplying clean hydrogen to 1,000 fuel cell vehicles  

Cummins, along with its partners, established this 1.2-megawatt proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolyzer site more than two years ago in Denmark. The site supplies clean hydrogen to customers of Air Liquide, a world leader in gases, technologies and services for Industry and Health, with Air Liquide operating the site. The PEM electrolyzer in Denmark is capable of supplying a fleet of more than 100 fuel cell electric vehicles per day and could contribute up to 0.5 percent of the transport sector greenhouse gas reduction targets in Denmark. 

Douglas County – U.S.A.: Enabling utilities to store excess energy 

Expected to be operational in 2021, this 5-megawatt PEM electrolyzer located in Douglas County in Washington state (U.S.A) will be the largest, as well as first of its kind in use by a public utility, in the United States. The new renewable hydrogen facility allows the Douglas County Public Utility District (PUD) to manufacture commercial hydrogen using electrolysis to harvest hydrogen from water from Wells Dam on the Columbia River. Cummins’ PEM electrolyzers, like Douglas County PUD’s electrolyzer, enables utilities to store the excess energy that they would typically sell off to the market at a financial loss, or not harness at all, and instead store that energy to sell into a new green hydrogen market. Additionally, it creates a way for utilities to engage in new market opportunities outside of their typical service area, removing growth barriers often faced in the industry. This project is made possible by legislation passed in Washington state in 2019, which authorized public utility districts to make and sell hydrogen. 

Becancour – Canada: Building the largest PEM electrolysis plant in the world 

Cummins is in the final stages of commissioning the largest PEM electrolysis plant in the world in Becancour, Canada for Air Liquide. The 20-megawatt facility will have an annual hydrogen output of approximately 3,000 tons. The electrolyzer will use renewable hydroelectricity to generate decarbonized, and green, hydrogen. The facility is planned to be operational in the coming months.   

As Cummins looks to the future, we see a shift in the energy market. With that change comes new possibilities and opportunities beyond our traditional product set. To better serve our customers and our planet, Cummins is innovating new, sustainable forms of power and bringing a wide range of new possibilities to the New Power product portfolio, providing a way to produce clean hydrogen to power hydrogen fuel cells, supply industrial processes or produce green chemicals like fertilizers, renewable natural gas and methanol. 

Cummins offers a variety of hydrogen-based technologies, including electrolyzer systems, and recently announced it will provide its 5-megawatt PEM electrolyzer to convert surplus hydro power to clean hydrogen for the Douglas County Public Utility District in Washington state (USA). But what exactly is an electrolyzer, how does it work and where does it fit in our green economy? 

What is an electrolyzer and how does it work?

An electrolyzer is a system that uses electricity to break water into hydrogen and oxygen in a process called electrolysis. Through electrolysis, the electrolyzer system creates hydrogen gas. The oxygen that’s left over is released into the atmosphere or can be captured or stored to supply other industrial processes or even medical gases in some cases.

The hydrogen gas can either be stored as a compressed gas or liquefied, and since hydrogen is an energy carrier it can be used to power any hydrogen fuel cell electric application — whether it’s trains, buses, trucks, or data centers. 

In its most basic form, an electrolyzer contains a cathode (negative charge), an anode (positive charge) and a membrane. The entire system also contains pumps, vents, storage tanks, a power supply, separator and other components. Water electrolysis is an electrochemical reaction which takes place within the cell stacks. Electricity is applied to the anode and cathode across the proton exchange membrane (PEM) and causes the water (H20) to split into its component molecules, hydrogen (H2) and oxygen (O2).

Are there different kinds of electrolyzers? 

Yes, they range in size and function. These electrolyzers can be scaled to meet a variety of input and output ranges, ranging in size from small industrial plants installed in shipping containers to large-scale centralized production facilities that can deliver the hydrogen by trucks or be connected to pipelines.

There are three main types of electrolyzers: proton echange membrane (PEM), alkaline and solid oxide. These different electrolyzers function in slightly different ways depending on the electrolyte material involved. Both alkaline and PEM electrolyzers can deliver on-site and on-demand hydrogen, pressurized hydrogen without a compressor and 99.999% pure, dry and carbon-free hydrogen.

The difference between the three main kinds of electrolyzers include:

Alkaline Electrolyzers

• Uses a liquid electrolyte solution such as potassium hydroxide (KOH) or sodium hydroxide (NAOH), and water. 
• The hydrogen is produced in a “cell” which consists of an anode, cathode and membrane. The cells are typically assembled in series in a “cell stack” that produces more hydrogen and oxygen as the amount of cell increases. 
• When current is applied on the cell stack, the hydroxide ions (OH-) move through the electrolyte from the cathode to the anode of each cell, with hydrogen gas bubbles generated on the cathode side of the electrolyzer and oxygen gas at the anode, as represented here.

Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) Electrolyzers

• PEM electrolyzers use a Proton Exchange Membrane which use a solid polymer electrolyte.
• When current is applied on the cell stack, the water splits in hydrogen and oxygen and the hydrogen protons pass through the membrane to form H2 gas on the cathode side.

Solid Oxide Electrolyzers (SOEC) 

• Uses solid ceramic material as the electrolyte
• Electrons from the external circuit combine with water at the cathode to form hydrogen gas and negatively charge ions. Oxygen then passes through the slid ceramic membrane and reacts at the anode to form oxygen gas and generate electrons for the external circuit
• SOECs operate at a much higher temperature (above 500C) than alkaline and PEM electrolyzers (up to 80C) and have the potential to become much more efficient than PEM and alkaline.

How are electrolyzers commercialized based hydrogen production?

There are four main ways that electrolyzers can be commercialized:

1. Power to mobility: Hydrogen can be used as fuel at refueling stations for fuel-cell electric vehicles such as buses, trains, and car.
2. Power to Fuel: Be used in refineries to remove sulfur from fossil fuels. 
3. Power to Industry: Be used directly as an industrial gas in the steel industry, flat glass plants, semi-conductor industry, etc.  It can also be injected directly into the natural gas grids for lower carbon heating and other natural gas applications.
4. Power to Gas: Be used in the production of green chemicals such as methanol, fertilizers (ammonia) and any other liquid fuel, even jet fuel!  

What’s so unique about hydrogen fuel cells?

The hydrogen produced from an electrolyzer is perfect for use with hydrogen fuel cells. Working much like a battery, fuel cells do not run down or need charging and produce electricity and heat as long as fuel is supplied. You can learn more about batteries and fuel cells here. The fuel cells use the hydrogen to generate electricity with zero emissions at the point of use. That means no fossil fuels or harmful emissions come from the tailpipe.

Even better, when the electrolyzer system is powered by a renewable energy source, such as a hydropower from the Columbia River Dams, the hydrogen produced is considered renewable and CO2-free from well to wheel. Learn more about well to wheel emissions in all-electric and fuel cell applications.

Why is hydrogen such a good option for clean energy?

Hydrogen presents an opportunity for mass market change in the energy industry. Energy systems across the globe are undergoing a fundamental transformation to focus on lower emissions and less negative impact on the environment.

To decrease the negative impacts of climate change and decarbonize the power sector, renewable technologies like wind and solar have emerged as key ingredients to providing a solution. But integrating these intermittent energy sources into the power grid can be challenging.

Hydrogen can act as an energy storage medium to address these grid challenges, allowing renewable power to be more easily used outside the electric power grid. Hydrogen is a stable way to store and transport renewable electricity efficiently over long periods of time. That way, renewable electricity generated by wind and solar that isn’t being used right away can be used another time or in another place. Hydrogen’s potential for storing and transporting energy makes it a key enabler of a global transition to renewable energy.

What is Cummins doing with electrolyzers?

Cummins made a bold entry into the hydrogen economy in September 2019 with the acquisition of Hydrogenics, a global hydrogen fuel cells and electrolyzer technology manufacturer. Cummins continues to make quick progress in innovating new products and applications in the hydrogen space, and currently, there are two different types of electrolyzers offered by Cummins:

1. The HyLYZER® Polymer Electrolyte Membrane (PEM) Electrolyzer uses an ionically conductive solid polymer and is better suited for large-scale hydrogen production.
2. The HySTAT® Alkaline Electrolyzer uses a liquid electrolyte and is well-suited for small- to medium-scale hydrogen production. 

Cummins is proud to be leading the charge in new hydrogen technology. With a century of experience in a multitude of power sources and drivetrains, we work with our customers to provide the right solution for the right customer at the right time. Whether it’s battery power, diesel, natural gas or fuel cells, your power is your choice.