i n t e r n a t i o n a l j o u r n a l o f h y d r o g e n e n e r g y 4 5 ( 2 0 2 0 ) 3 3 8 4 6 e3 3 8 5 9

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Evaluation of the introduction of a hydrogen supply

chain using a conventional gas pipelineeA case
study of the QinghaieShanghai hydrogen supply
chain

Shin'ya Obara a, Jiaren Li b,*

a
Kitami Institute of Technology, Power Engineering Lab., Dep. of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Koen-cho 165,
Kitami, Hokkaido 090-8507, Japan
b
Kitami Institute of Technology, Power Engineering Lab., Graduate School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering,
Japan

highlights

Introductory method of a hydrogen supply chain using gas pipeline was shown.

Economic and environmental benefits were clarified from the energy flow.

Potentiality of a large-scale clean energy using hydrogen was suggested.

Gas pipeline currently installed between Qinghai and Shanghai was analyzed.

article info abstract

Article history: A large-scale hydrogen supply chain is an alternative for the transportation of energy
Received 6 July 2020 generated from a renewable energy source. Utilizing this technology would drastically
Received in revised form improve the generation of clean energy. Therefore, an analysis method to estimate the
14 August 2020 economic and environmental benefits of the introduction of a hydrogen supply chain using
Accepted 2 September 2020 an existing pipeline is developed. The proposed method first estimates the energy and
Available online 29 September 2020 exergy flows in the system to calculate the overall efficiency of these quantities. Afterward,
the payback period is estimated based on the overall energy efficiency using the discounted
Keywords: cash flow (DCF) method. The overall efficiency of the system, based on the energy analysis
Hydrogen presented, would seem to be the final delivered electrical, fuel and useable heat energy
Supply chain delivered to end use divided by the input solar and wind energy. Furthermore, the envi-
Economic gain ronmental effects due to the introduction of the systems are evaluated considering the
Environmental impact reduction of global warming and air pollution gases, such as CO2 and PM2.5. The proposed
China analysis method was applied considering a natural gas pipeline that connects Qinghai and
Shanghai. As a result, conversion ratios of 24.9% for electricity and 17.5% for heat were
achieved, with the overall efficiency of the system of 42.4% based on the electricity ob-
tained from photovoltaics. 3.02 Gt of CO2, 104 kt of SOx, and 134 kt of NOx, which represent
3.3%, 0.5%, and 0.6% of the annual discharge in China, respectively, and 8.66 kt of PM2.5
would be reduced every year. Furthermore, a reduction of 953 Mt in coal consumption is
expected. The payback period of the proposed system using the DCF method is 4.17 and

* Corresponding author.
E-mail address: obara@mail.kitami-it.ac.jp (J. Li).
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhydene.2020.09.009
0360-3199/© 2020 Hydrogen Energy Publications LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
 i n t e r n a t i o n a l j o u r n a l o f h y d r o g e n e n e r g y 4 5 ( 2 0 2 0 ) 3 3 8 4 6 e3 3 8 5 9
2.28 years for the two alternatives evaluated in this work. The cash flow of the DCF is
influenced by installation cost and operation cost of equipment.
© 2020 Hydrogen Energy Publications LLC. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Introduction
The supply chain using renewable hydrogen contributes to
expansion of clean energy. Research studies on the hydrogen
supply chain, such as that proposed by Seo SK, Yun DY, and
Lee CJ, in which the design and optimization of a hydrogen
supply chain using a centralized storage model [1] were
analyzed, are increasing. Reus et al. investigated the hydrogen
supply chain with spatial resolution [2]. A study that evaluated
the contribution of upcycling surplus hydrogen, to design a
sustainable supply chain, was conducted by Yanez M, Ortiz A,
and Brunaud B [3]. A study of the seasonal storage and alter-
native carriers using a flexible hydrogen supply chain model
was realized by Reus M, Grube T, Robinius M, Preuster P,
Wasserscheid P, and Stolten D [4].
There has been extensive investigation of the economic
and environmental impacts of power-to-gas and of renewable
hydrogen and methane supply chain including several of the
references sited in this work. Generally, to scale the genera-
tion of renewable energy, a large investment in the trans-
mission network and a high preparation period are required.
In contrast, the investment to transport the renewable
hydrogen using an existing pipeline of natural gas is lower.
However, as air pollution may be controlled when switching
from natural gas to hydrogen, this method is studied widely.
Liu B, Liu S, Guo S, and Zhang S investigated the economic gain
of a large-scale renewable hydrogen application utilizing a
pipeline that previously supplied natural gas, in China [5].
Meanwhile, Timmerberg S and Kaltschmitt M analyzed
hydrogen transport in a pipeline from North Africa to Central
Europe [6]. Andresen L, Bode C, and Schmitz G clarified the
dynamic analysis method of different transport configura-
tions of renewable hydrogen to a refinery, considering coupled
energy system approaches [7]. Cerniauskas S, Junco AJC,
Grube T, Robinius M, and Stolten D designed a method to
evaluate the cost of configurations when reassigning natural
gas to hydrogen [8]. Furthermore, Reznicek EP and Braun RJ
studied cell systems to integrate the natural gas pipeline and
carbon capture infrastructure to improve grid energy man-
agement [9]. In their work, the gas pipeline contained 5e6% of
hydrogen. Regarding the energy and economic and environ-
mental analyses, Yuan M, Zhang H, Wang B, Shen R, Long Y,
and Liang Y predicted the impacts of the pipeline network
reform in China [10]. The cost of renewable hydrogen is pre-
dicted by the IEA [11] and Yanga and Ogden were investigating
the lowest-cost hydrogen delivery mode [12]. Furthermore,
the NREL has released the estimate of hydrogen pipeline costs
[13].
When an existing natural gas pipeline is used for hydrogen
transport, the environmental impacts caused by CO2 and
PM2.5, which are produced from fossil fuel consumption.
33847
Furthermore, when hydrogen is stored (to preserve the elec-
tricity supply), partial load operations of a power plant are
more feasible; therefore, improvements in the electric gener-
ation efficiency and reduction of the discharge of polluting
gases are expected. However, the potential economic and
environmental benefits of the construction of the hydrogen
supply chain have not been evaluated often. As a result, in this
study, a new method to evaluate these benefits was proposed,
considering an existing pipeline. First, the energy and exergy
losses of the hydrogen supply chain were quantified, to obtain
the energy and exergy overall efficiencies. Afterward, the
economic gain, which was calculated based on these calcu-
lated efficiencies, was estimated considering the return of
investment, which was quantified with the discounted cash
flow (DCF) method. Furthermore, the environmental benefits
of the supply chain system were evaluated based on the
reduction of air pollution gases, such as CO2 and PM2.5.
Moreover, the energy produced in areas with rich renew-
able energy resources can be transported through long pipes
to other areas where the energy demand is relatively high.
One example is the high gap in the supply and demand of
renewable energy when comparing the eastern and western
areas of China. Although electricity and heat are supplied to a
big city along the sea, large quantities of CO2 and other air
pollution gases are emitted. This gap was studied by Dai H,
Mischke P, Xie X, Xie Y, and Masui T, regarding energy con-
sumption and CO2 emissions [14]. In particular, the reduction
of coal-fired power plants caused by the installation of a
pipeline that transports hydrogen between Qinghai, where
high solar radiation is present, and Shanghai, where the en-
ergy demand is high. As a result, the economic gain and
reduction of air pollutants were quantified, assuming the
generation of hydrogen due to water electrolysis, hydrogen
transportation through a pipeline, and electricity and heat
supply by solid-oxide fuel cell (SOFC) cogeneration. First, the
system was proposed and analyzed as a substitution of the
conventional thermal power station. Second, this system was
proposed as an alternative to natural gas used for heating.
Proposed system
The proposed hydrogen supply chain consists of a technique
in which hydrogen is produced using the electricity provided
from a renewable energy source. This component is, there-
after, compressed, transported in a pipeline, and used, as
shown in Fig. 1. The hydrogen production plant (water elec-
trolysis facility) is installed near a renewable energy source,
which generates electricity that can be supplied through a
commercial transmission network for water electrolyzation in
the plant (Fig. 1). The H2 holder, which stores the hydrogen
33848 i n t e r n a t i o n a l j o u r n a l o f h y d r o g e n e n e r g y 4 5 ( 2 0 2 0 ) 3 3 8 4 6 e3 3 8 5 9
Fig. 1 e Proposed hydro gen supply chain system.
Fig. 2 e Energy flow of the hydrogen production plant.
produced in the plant, is responsible for guaranteeing the
constant hydrogen supply to the pipeline.
When a fuel cell is installed in the hydrogen production
plant, power can be supplied through a transmission
network. However, as this network requires a long prepara-
tion period and high investment (the installation cost of a
transmission line in Japan is approximately USD 600,000/km
[15]), this paper investigates hydrogen transport by using an
existing natural gas pipeline. As the pressure increases with
the pipeline length, the uniform installation of booster
compressors along the pipeline is required to improve
transportation efficiency.
In the demand side of the process, hydrogen can be utilized
to generate electricity and heat (replacing the power plant and
natural gas, respectively, of the conventional procedure) with
a fuel cell cogeneration or only heat. As the prices of electricity
and heat differ in the introductory area, the economic gain
from the system is strongly affected by the location. The uti-
lization of a large-scale renewable energy source, to reduce
the environmental impacts caused by fossil fuel consumption,
combined with hydrogen transportation using a conventional
natural gas pipeline was the objective of the proposed system.
It assumes transporting 100% of water electrolytic hydrogen
by the pipeline.
Energy flow
Energy flow of the hydrogen production plant
Fig. 2 shows an energy flow diagram of the hydrogen pro-
duction plant, where p is the electric power or enthalpy, Dp is
the consumed electric power, and h is efficiency. The time-
dependent variables are expressed as p_ and h._ The electricity
generated from the renewable energy source is supplied to the
water electrolyzer through an electrical system composed of
an ACeDC or DCeDC converter or a power controller. After the
hydrogen is extracted from the water, it is compressed and
stored in a H2 holder.
Water electrolysis system
The electric power outputted from a renewable energy source,
p_hg; 1 , was calculated based on the generated wind power, p_wp ,
wind power conversion efficiency, h_ wp , generated photovoltaic
power, p_pv , and photovoltaic conversion efficiency, h_ pv , as
indicated in Eq. (1). By considering the efficiency of the electric
system (ACeDC converter, DCeDC converter, and power
controller), the electric power supplied to the water
 i n t e r n a t i o n a l j o u r n a l o f h y d r o g e n e n e r g y 4 5 ( 2 0 2 0 ) 3 3 8 4 6 e3 3 8 5 9
Fig. 3 e Energy flow of the transportation process of hydrogen.
electrolyzer, p_hg; 2 , could be quantified, as shown in Eq. (2).
Furthermore, the enthalpy of the hydrogen outputted from the
water electrolyzer, p_hg; 3 , was obtained based on the efficiency
of the water electrolysis, h_ we , and p_hg; 2 , as shown in Eq. (3):
p_hg; 1 ¼ h_ wp ,p_wp þ h_ pv ,p_pv ¼ p_hg; wp;1 þ p_hg; pv;1
!
p_hg; 2 ¼ hadc , p_hg;wp;1 þ hddc , p_hg;pv;1 ,hpcn
p_hg; 3 ¼ h_ we ,p_hg;2
As h_ we is dependent on the electric power supplied to the
water electrolyzer, J_we , the theoretical hydrogen generated
based on the quantity of electricity, Jwe;th , and the voltage E_we ,
and the theoretical voltage, Ewe;th , of the water electrolyzer, Eq.
(3) was rewritten as Eq. (4). Furthermore, hwe was calculated
considering the electrical and potential efficiencies, hj and hv ,
respectively, as indicated in Eq. (5). The efficiency of an actual
water electrolyzer often varies from 70% to 90% depending on
the oxygen, hydrogen, and resistance overvoltage. The values
of Jwe;th and Ewe;th to produce 1 Nm3-H2 of hydrogen on the
water electrolyzer are 2.393 kA h/Nm3-H2, and 1.481 V,
respectively, assuming standard conditions.
Jwe;th Ewe;th
p_hg; 3 ¼ h_ we ,p_hg; 2 ¼ , ,p_hg; 2
J_we E_we
hwe ¼ hj ,hv
Compressor
The theoretical power required for polytropic compression, Lc ,
was expressed by Eq. (6), which considered the hydrogen
quantity and the target pressure outputted from the water
Fig. 4 e Energy flow of the demand side.
33849
electrolyzer. P1 [Pa] and P2 [Pa] in Eq. (6) are the pressures
before and after the compression of the gas, respectively, n is
the polytropic index, n1 is the volume flow before compres-
sion, and ha is the overall adiabatic efficiency. The actual
power consumption to compress the gas, Dp_cp , was evaluated
(1) when the total efficiency of the compressor and motor, rep-
resented as hgt , was considered, as indicated in Eq. (7):
(2)  n1 
1 n P2 n
Lc ¼ , , P1 , n1 , 1 (6)
ha n  1 P1
(3)
Dp_cp ¼ hgt ,Lc (7)
As a result, the enthalpy of the hydrogen outputted from
the hydrogen compressor, p_hg;GP , was evaluated by Eq. (8),
based on p_hg; 3 , Dp_hc , and energy loss of the compressor Dp_hc;loss :
p_hg;GP ¼ p_hg; 3  Dp_hc  Dp_hc;loss (8)
Energy flow of hydrogen transportation using a pipeline
Fig. 3 shows energy flow of hydrogen transportation of a
pipeline. The pressure drop of the gas increases with the
length of the natural gas pipeline; therefore, booster
compressor stations were required along the pipeline to
ensure the uniform transport volume of hydrogen trans-
(4) portation. The installed number of the booster compressor is
decided by defining the upper limit of the pressure loss. The
pressure drop of the gas pipeline, considering a pipeline of 1 m
(5) length, was evaluated by Eqs. (9) and (10), where Dpgp;i/j and
Li/j are the pressure drop due to the friction and length,
respectively, between sections i and j of the pipeline, l is the
coefficient of friction, g is the gravity, Wg is the gas mass-flow,
d is the inner diameter of the pipeline, and rm is the average
gas density. The power consumption of each booster
33850 i n t e r n a t i o n a l j o u r n a l o f h y d r o g e n e n e r g y 4 5 ( 2 0 2 0 ) 3 3 8 4 6 e3 3 8 5 9
compressor was expressed by Eq. (11), while the enthalpy of
hydrogen at the outlet, exj , was considered in Eq. (12):
l,Lj ,W_ 2
Dp_hgp;exj ¼ 6:26,10 ,g, 5 6 g
d ,rm
 0:2
2k
l ¼ 0:067,
d
Dp_hgp;exj
Dp_hcp;exj ¼
hel ,hhcp;exj
Dp_hgc;exj ¼ Dp_hgp;exj  Dp_hcp;exj
Energy flow on the demand side
Fig. 4 shows a diagram representing the energy flow on the
demand side. The output of the fuel cell (SOFC), p_sofc;e , can be
adjusted by controlling the convective heat transfer of the
heating medium (air), Dp_sofc;tc . Air was supplied to the cathode
of the SOFC as an oxidizer (p_sofc;cm ). Moreover, some of the
unused hydrogen (p_sofc;uh ), which is discharged from the
anode of the SOFC, was recovered and used as a fuel in the off-
gas boiler. The heat generated from this combustion was,
therefore, combined with the high-temperature exhaust heat
(p_sofc;ofg ) of the SOFC. The thermal energy (p_ogb;h ) of the off-gas
boiler was, thereafter, stored in the heat storage tank, where it
could be supplied through the backup boiler (p_h;out ). In
contrast, the electric power (p_sofc;e ) of the SOFC was supplied
through the power conditioner (p_e;out ).
Electricity and heat balance equation
The combined energy of the hydrogen supplied by the H2
holder, p_hgc; pj , and the heat due to the heat transmission
provided by the cooling medium, Dp_sofc;tc , was designated in
the SOFC to the electricity output, p_sofc;e , exhaust heat output,
p_sofc;ofg (including Joule's heat), unused hydrogen, p_sofc;uh , ra-
diation of heat radiation, p_sofc;rad due to the high-temperature
operation, and other losses, Dp_sofc;loss , such as concentration
and activation overpotential, power consumption of the
heating-medium, and circulating pump. Eq. (13) indicates the
energy balance on the demand side. As p_sofc;e was affected by
the power conditioner of efficiency (hpcn Þ, the power output of
the proposed system was defined by Eq. (14):
p_sofc;e ¼ p_hghd  p_sofc;ofg  p_sofc;uh  Dp_sofc;tc  Dp_sofc;rad  Dp_sofc;loss
p_e;out ¼ hpcn ,p_sofc;e
Eq. (15) describes the thermal power (p_ogb;h Þ of the off-gas
boiler based on the efficiency of the off-gas boiler, h_ sofc;h .
Table 1 e Notation for components.
i 1 2 3 4 5
Component N2 O2 H2 CH4 H2O
Meanwhile, Eq. (16) represents the thermal power from the
heat storage tank, p_h;out ; based on the efficiency of the backup
boiler, hbkb :
(9) !
p_ogb;h ¼ p_sofc;h , h_ sofc;h þ p_sofc;ofg ,hogb (15)
(10) !
p_h;out ¼ p_ogb;h , h_ hst þ Dp_bkb ,hbkb (16)
(11)
SOFC
(12) Eq. (17) indicates the energy balance in the SOFC, considering
the internal reforming of methane, where m_ is the molar flow
rate of fluid, h is the molar-specific enthalpy, rad is the reaction
rate in the anode, and m_ hm;in is the molar flow rate from the
heating medium. The terms on the left-hand side of this
equation represent the enthalpy change in the anode, cath-
ode, and heating medium (to control the temperature of the
fuel cell), and the energetic change of the chemical reaction,
respectively. In contrast, the right-hand side of the equation
represents the energy generated by the supplied hydrogen.
The working temperature of the SOFC is defined through Eq.
(17). In situations in which the load changes, the operation
temperature must be controlled.
X
N   XN  
m_ ad;in;i , had;in;i  hi þ m_ cd;in;i , hcd;in;i  hi
i¼1 i¼1
  XM
þ m_ hm;in , hhm;in  hhm;out þ hrc; j , rad;j
j¼1
¼ p_sofc;e þ Dp_sofc;rad þ p_sofc;ofg þ p_sofc;h þ Dp_sofc;tc
þ Dp_sofc;hl whereN ¼ 7 and M ¼ 4: (17)
N in Eq. (17) is the number of components of the substance,
which are indicated in Table 1, regarding enthalpy change of
the anode and the cathode, assuming the internal reforming
of methane. Meanwhile, M is the number of chemical re-
actions conducted in the fuel cell, which are shown in Table 2,
assuming internal reforming. As a result, in the electro-
chemical response of pure hydrogen (reaction 1 of Table 2),
only three substances (O2, H2, and H2O) are necessary.
The working temperature of the fuel cell at a steady-state
operation was 850  C. Furthermore, sufficient air was always
supplied from the heating medium during the operation. Eqs.
(18) and (19) were used to describe the radiation (Dp_sofc;rad ) and
convective (Dp_sofc;tc ) heat transfers in the SOFC, respectively.
In these equations, Srad is the irradiated surface area, zwall is
emissivity,Twall and Tg are the temperature of the heated
(13) surface and air, respectively, Shc is the heated surface area due
to convection, and hc is the heat transfer coefficient.
(14)
Table 2 e Reactions at anode electrode and reformer.
Reaction number Anode reaction
1 H2 þ O2 /H2 O þ 2e
2 CH4 þ H2 O4CO þ 3H2
6 7 3 CO þ H2 O4CO2 þ H2
CO CO2 4 CH4 þ 2H2 O4CO2 þ 4H2
 i n t e r n a t i o n a l j o u r n a l o f h y d r o g e n e n e r g y 4 5 ( 2 0 2 0 ) 3 3 8 4 6 e3 3 8 5 9 33851

  

Dp_sofc;rad ¼ Srad , zwall , s , T4wall  T4g ; s ¼ 5:67  108 W m2 , K4 P

ei;T ¼ R,T ln (23)
Pi
(18)

Dp_sofc;tc ¼ Shc , hc , Twall  Tg (19) Evaluation method

Economic gain
Exergy flow
In this study, the return of investment of the system is esti-
Exergy is the theoretical maximum workload that could be mated through the dynamic payback period, which was
obtained from a particular state until a steady state is reached. calculated with the DCF method. A discount rate was applied
As a result, the calculation of exergy considers environmental to account for the uncertainty of a future positive balance. As
quantities, such as the ambient temperature, T0 , and pressure, a result, this rate was positively affected by the risk of the
P0 . operation, reducing economic gain. The future cash flow and
the investment of the project were evaluated at the present, to
Heat flow rate enable the development of a cash flow plan. The net present
value (Vnpv ) and dynamic payback period (Pdb ) were taken into
When the logarithmic mean temperature difference, Tm , of an consideration by the DCF method.
object with temperature change is used, the exergy, e_h , obtained, Eq. (24) was used to calculate the years required to recover
considering the energy absorbed by the object, p_abs , is calculated the present value, Vnpv . Furthermore, t is the year of the project
by Eq. (20), which also represents the work of a Carnot cycle. period and n is the total project period, ðCin;t Cout;t Þ is a term
  representing the difference of cash inflows, Cin;t , and outflows,
T0
e_h ¼ 1  ,p_abs (20) Cout;t , at t, and i is the discount rate:
Tm
n h
X i

 t
Chemical reaction Vnpv ¼ Cin;t  Cout;t ð1 þ iÞ (24)
t¼1

At the initial state, a substance of enthalpy, H_ 0 , entropy, S_0 , T* was defined as the year of the first positive balance, which
and flow rate, m_ g , reacts under temperature, T, generating a was used to calculate Pdb , as indicated in Eq. (25). Furthermore,
substance with output enthalpy, H_ p , and entropy, S_p . Vnpv were also considered to evaluate the Pdb . As the Vnpv is
Assuming this scenario, Eq. (21) can describe the maximum modified through the years, Pdb is a more accurate quantity to
work, e_heat;T , that can be extracted from this chemical reaction: estimate the years required to recover the investment when
compared with Vnpv .
   
e_heat;T ¼ m_ g , H_ 0  H_ p  T , S_0  S_p (21)  TX
* 1 .
 
Pdb ¼ T*  1 þ  Vnpv  Vnpv;T* (25)
Furthermore, Fig. 5 shows a chemical reactor in which t¼1

substances s1 and s2, with partial pressures, Ps1 and Ps2 ,

Environmental benefits
respectively, react with each other under a temperature T and
pressure P, producing substance s3. The change in the stan-
Renewable hydrogen may be used to reduce the necessity of
dard free energy of formation,  DG_ f;T , which is known
conventional natural gas transported through pipelines.
because of previous examinations of the literature, is
Furthermore, the proposed system may also be used an
expressed by Eq. (22), based on the exergy of each substance,
alternative to reduce the number of thermal power stations. In
e_s1;T , e_s2;T , and e_s3;T . For example, if s2 was a gas, the standard
this work, the environmental benefits were evaluated based
exergy ei;T could be calculated through Eq. (23), which repre-
on the reduction of discharged CO2 and exhaust gases (SOx,
sents a reversible isothermal expansion:
NOx, NH3); regarding PM2.5, the results of the conventional
  system (coal power plant) were compared with those of the
DG_ f;T ¼ e_s1;T  e_s2;T  e_s3;T (22) proposed system.

Case study

In this case study, the gas pipeline currently installed between

Qinghai and Shanghai, located in the western and eastern
areas of China, respectively, was analyzed. The economic and
environmental benefits of introducing the proposed hydrogen
supply chain were also investigated. The solar radiation dur-
ing a year is constantly high in the surrounding area of
Qinghai, whose population density is 7.8 persons/km2. As a
Fig. 5 e Chenal reaction and excergy.
33852 i n t e r n a t i o n a l j o u r n a l o f h y d r o g e n e n e r g y 4 5 ( 2 0 2 0 ) 3 3 8 4 6 e3 3 8 5 9

Fig. 6 e Electricity grid of China.

Fig. 7 e Gas pipeline of China.

 i n t e r n a t i o n a l j o u r n a l o f h y d r o g e n e n e r g y 4 5 ( 2 0 2 0 ) 3 3 8 4 6 e3 3 8 5 9 33853

Fig. 8 e Annual average of total radiation in China (1978e2007) [20].

electricity grid of China [16]. As a result, the western areas,

Table 3 e Efficiency of electrical equipment and water
such as Qinghai, which have a high potential to generate en-
electrolyzer.
ergy from renewable sources, does not directly supply the
DCeDC converter 90%
large consumer cities in the eastern area. In this case study,
Power controller 90%
therefore, the introduction of the proposed hydrogen supply
Water electrolyzer (rated operation) 80%
chain composed of the gas pipeline shown in Fig. 7, which
connects the eastern and western areas of China, was
analyzed [17]. The total length, diameter, and designed pres-
Table 4 e Specifications of the SOFC. sure of the pipeline were approximately 3000 km, 1.016 m, and
Power generation efficiency 50% 10 MPa, respectively. Furthermore, the design was
Efficiency of heat output 40% 120  108 m3/year of CH4, the wall thickness to support the
Air fuel ratio 3.0 designed pressure was between 14.6 and 26.2 mm, and the
Reaction temperature 850  C materials of the wall were X69 and X70 steel [18]. Nguyen et al.
Reaction pressure (gauge) 0.15 MPa showed the important result regarding with hydrogen
SOFC inverter 95%
embrittlement of pipeline steel X70, they have negated the
Utilization factor of hydrogen 90%
influence of long-term exposure on electrolytic hydrogen at
Efficiency of air compressor 55%
Power conditioner 90% 10 MPa [19].

Hydrogen supply chain between Qinghai and Shanghai

Table 5 e Specifications of the heat supply system. Owing to the high levels of solar radiation, as shown in Fig. 8
Off-gas boiler 90% [20], the introduction of photovoltaic energy generation in the
Heat storage tank 95% surrounding area of Qinghai is profitable. As a result, the
Backup boiler 92%
proposed hydrogen production plant was assumed to be
installed in Qinghai. Furthermore, the water used in the
result, this area is suitable for photovoltaic generation. In electrolysis process was supplied by a nearby river.
contrast, Shanghai is a large commercial town, with a popu-
lation of 24, 280, 000 people; therefore, it is a prominent energy Analysis setup
demand of China.
In the investigations of the energy and exergy flows of the
Energy network in China proposed system, the following hypotheses were assumed:

A high-voltage transmission line between the eastern and - The maximum efficiency of the equipment was obtained
western areas of China is not installed; Fig. 6 shows the main considering the rated power.
33854 i n t e r n a t i o n a l j o u r n a l o f h y d r o g e n e n e r g y 4 5 ( 2 0 2 0 ) 3 3 8 4 6 e3 3 8 5 9

Table 6 e Equipment capacity and cost estimation.

Equipment capacity

Power of hydrogen production equipment 482 GWh/day

Photovoltaics 120 GW
Hydrogen production capacity 120  1010 Nm3/year

Equipment costs

Hydrogen production equipment price [5] USD 1260/(Nm3/h)

Hydrogen compressor price [5] USD 296/(Nm3/h)
SOFC cogeneration USD 9  106/MW

Operation and maintenance cost

Labor cost per person [5] USD 8890/year

Number of employees [5] 2 person/MW
Annual maintenance [5] USD 2.83  106/year
Major repair expenses of hydrogen production equipment [5] 10% of hydrogen production equipment price
Average water price [5] USD 0.52/t
Other operating costs [5] USD 1.56  109/year

Transportation cost

Total transportation of H2 1.071  108 t/year

Average price of pipeline transportation [5] USD 0.028/Nm3/1000 km
Average transportation distance 3000 km
Leakage rate [5] 0.0005%

Land and construction cost

Land space requirement [5] 200 m2/MW

Land price [5] USD 29.6/m2
Construction period [5] 2 years
Construction cost [5] USD 7.83  109

- The system was in a rated operation. compressors, power conditioners, and heat equipment in
- The heat loss of the SOFC due to radiation was considered Table 5 were also quantified considering that they were
in the electric generation efficiency. general-purpose products.

The volume flow of the hydrogen transported was
assumed to be the same as that of the present natural gas
under the same pressure. As a result, a flow of 1.071  108 t/
year could be achieved, resulting in 1.519  1013 MJ/year
(4.16  1010 MJ/day) when the heat generated by the hydrogen
was calculated. Furthermore, an area of approximately
25 km  25 km (equivalent to 120 GW) for a photovoltaic power
plant was required to achieve these values.
Photovoltaics and water electrolyzer
The cost of photovoltaic facilities was assumed to be USD 250/
kW [21]. Furthermore, an outdoor air temperature of 295 K and
a pressure of 0.101 MPa were considered the standard condi-
tions of the system when the electricity of photovoltaics was
supplied to the water electrolyzer through a DCeDC converter.
The output pressure of the water electrolyzer, which worked
with a proton exchange membrane, was 0.1 MPa (gauge).
Table 3 indicates the efficiencies of the electrical system and
water electrolyzer, which were assumed considering they
were commercial products.
SOFC and heat supply system
Tables 4 and 5 show the setting conditions of the SOFC and
heat supply system. Although the percentages of outputted
electricity and heat of the SOFC differ based on the operation
method, a fixed value was used in this case study to simplify
the calculations. The efficiencies of the inverters,
Facilities cost and finance
Table 6 shows the installed capacity and cost of the equip-
ment used in the proposed facility, while Table 7 shows the
values used in the DCF method to evaluate the finances of
the operation [5]. The other operating costs and the con-
struction cost in Table 6 were obtained based on the differ-
ence of system capacity of reference [5] and the capacity of
the proposed system. Section Energy network in China,
Section Analysis setup, and Section Environmental benefits
has described the value of others in Table 6. The total proj-
ect period was estimated to be 22 years, which was
composed of the construction period (2 years) and the
operation period (20 years). The price of the SOFC cogene-
ration was evaluated considering the Japanese industrial
SOFC cogeneration as a reference. The pipeline pressure
drop was 7.93 kPa/km, and the pressure ratio of the
compressor station, where the inlet pressure was approxi-
mately 7 MPa, was 1.4. As a result, a compressor station was
Table 7 e Financing costs [5].
Discount rate 8%
Loan interest 5%
Equity/debt 30%/70%
Repayment period 10 years
Operation period 20 years
Value-added tax rate 8.50%
Income tax rate 20%
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installed every 378 km, leading to seven compressor stations
in the operation. The energy loss due to the compression in
the 3000-km gas pipeline was approximately 2.8%, which
was similar to a reference value of approximately 1% of
energy per thousand kilometers. The installation cost of the
booster compressor is taking into consideration. Moreover,
API-X70 pipeline's hydrogen embrittlement is almost
satisfactory [19], the pipeline's improvement cost does not
take into consideration.
The period to pay the fixed cost was 10 years and large-
scale maintenance was assumed to be implemented in 10
years after the start of commercial operation. Moreover, the
discount rate of a renewable energy project in China usually
varies from 6% to 10%. The value-added tax rate was half the

Fig. 9 e Analytic results for the energy flow.

Fig. 10 e Analytic results for the energy flow at 22.

Fig. 11 e Loss of energy and excergy.

33856 i n t e r n a t i o n a l j o u r n a l o f h y d r o g e n e n e r g y 4 5 ( 2 0 2 0 ) 3 3 8 4 6 e3 3 8 5 9

Fig. 12 e Analyst results of economic performance.

 i n t e r n a t i o n a l j o u r n a l o f h y d r o g e n e n e r g y 4 5 ( 2 0 2 0 ) 3 3 8 4 6 e3 3 8 5 9
sum in the price of the renewable energy project, which is a
commonly applied rate in China for this type of project.
Meanwhile, the income tax rate was estimated based on the
government tax rate in China for the renewable energy
industry.
Water electrolyzer is interconnecting with electricity gen-
eration of the photovoltaics. Therefore, the capacity factors of
the water electrolyzer and photovoltaics is 15%. The capacity
factors of the fuel cell differ with operating pattern by the
demand side. In this analysis example, the capacity factors
(60%) of a home cogeneration is applied.
Analysis results
Energy and exergy flows
Figs. 9 and 10 show the analysis results of the energy and the
exergy flow distributions, respectively. According to Fig. 9, with
the proposed hydrogen supply chain, 24.9% and 17.5% of the
photovoltaic generation could be converted into electricity and
heat, respectively, corresponding to the overall efficiency of the
system of 42.4%. Meanwhile, Fig. 11 shows the magnitude of the
energy and exergy losses. As a result, the conversion loss of
water electrolysis (16%) represented the largest loss, followed by
the DCeDC converter of photovoltaics (10%) and power condi-
tioner (9%). In contrast, the highest exergy losses were due to the
water electrolyzer (16%), DCeDC converter (10%) of photovoltaic
generation, power conditioner (9%), hydrogen compressor
(11.4%), and booster compressors (9%). As a result, the large
exergy losses in the system were attributed mostly to
electricesubstance (water electrolyzer), electriceelectric
(DCeDC converter and power conditioner), and electricework
(compressor) conversions. Moreover, the final exergy effi-
ciency obtained from the proposed system was 19.4% and 18.4%
considering the output of electricity and heat, respectively.
One possibility to improve the efficiency of the proposed
system is to reduce the loss of the electrical machinery and
apparatus (DCeDC converter and power conditioner) coupled
with photovoltaic generation by using the exhaust heat of the
electrical machinery and apparatus. A technique or system
configuration that results in an efficiency of water electrolysis
above 80% was not found in the literature; however, most
improvements in the efficiency of the process have focused on
the utilization of exhaust heat.
Economical gain
By examining the economic gain, electricity generation and
waste heat management are analyzed considering the power
plant alternative system and a scenario in which the hydrogen
supplied is used to generate heat (gas alternative system). In
the first case, both electricity and heat generated from SOFC
Table 8 e Analytical results of the payback period.
Power plant Town gas
alternative alternative
system system
Simple cumulative cash flow 2 years 2 years
Net present value (NPV, Vnpv ) 16,850 M$ 5800 M$
Internal rate of return (IRR) 32% 29%
Dynamic payback period (DPBPPdb ) 4.17 years 2.28 years
33857
cogeneration were sold to the consumer. Meanwhile, in the
gas alternative system, the selling price of hydrogen was
determined based on the same quantity-of-heat unit price of
the previously used natural gas.
Fig. 12 compares the economic gain results of both alter-
natives. By integrating the cost, income, and expenditure, the
simple cumulative cash flow and cumulative cash flow by net
present value were obtained, as shown in Fig. 12(a). As the
discount rate included the risk of investment in the cumula-
tive cash flow of the net present value, the results of this cu-
mulative cash flow were lower than those of the simple
cumulative cash flow. After the project is finished (22 years),
the simple cumulative cash flow would be approximately 2.8
and 2.4 times higher than the cumulative cash flow with the
net present value in the power plant and gas alternatives,
respectively.
The time to recover the investment, considering the simple
cumulative cash flow, was 2 years for both systems, and
profits occur from after the third year, as shown in Table 8. In
contrast, the time to recover the investment when using the
net present value was 3 and 2 years, with the power plant and
gas alternative systems, respectively. Moreover, Pdb was 4.17
and 2.28 years, for each alternative, respectively. These values
were significantly different when compared to the difference
of years to recover the investment calculated from the simple
cumulative cash flow; therefore, the economic gain of the
system should be carefully evaluated.
As compared with the economical efficiency result of the
natural gas transportation containing hydrogen by Liu et al.
[5], the result of the dynamic payback period of this study is 1/
4 to 1/3. The efficiency of the fuel cell cogeneration introduced
into urban areas was high, and the price of electricity and heat
supply was more inexpensive than the conventional method.
Fig. 12(b) shows the variations in the cost components
considering the project period, while Fig. 12(c) shows the sum
of the costs of Fig. 12(b). Where, some taxes are not included in
Fig. 12 (b). The fixed cost was paid in the first 10 years and the
large-scale maintenance was implemented 10 years after the
initialization of commercial operation. The cost of the SOFC
was the largest (53.5%) for the power plant alternative system,
while the water electrolyzer represented the largest values
(36.7%) for the town gas alternative system. The cost per-
centage of hydrogen compression (including the booster
compressor) was 4% and 8.6% in the power plant and town gas
alternative systems, respectively. The personnel expenses
were 3.2% in the power plant alternative system and 7% in the
town gas alternative system. From these results, the costs of
the energy equipment, such as the SOFC, and the water
electrolyzer, influenced the economic efficiency significantly.
Furthermore, although the SOFC is not manufactured globally,
the reduction of its future price is estimated and required to
increase the economic gain of this project.
Environmental benefits
The standard coal-fired power generation in China may be
replaced by the town gas alternative of the hydrogen power
supply chain that connects Qinghai to Shanghai.
Power plant alternative system. The hydrogen quantity,
which would be supplied to Shanghai from Qinghai, is
33858 i n t e r n a t i o n a l j o u r n a l o f h y d r o g e n e n e r g y 4 5 ( 2 0 2 0 ) 3 3 8 4 6 e3 3 8 5 9

482 GW per year, which corresponds to 433 GW of power

supply per year to the circumference of Shanghai after the Declaration of competing interest
SOFC losses were discarded. Assuming that the Chinese
electricity demand is approximately 1600 GW, approximately The authors declare that they have no known competing
27% of this demand could be accomplished with the pro- financial interests or personal relationships that could have
posed hydrogen system. Meanwhile, the amount of power appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
supplied by coal is 25.3%. The substitution of coal to
hydrogen would reduce 3.02 Gt of CO2, 104 kt of SOx, 134 kt
Nomenclature
of NOx, and 8.66 kt of PM2.5 per year, assuming that the
C Cash flow [USD/year]
exhaust gas of the standard Chinese coal-fired power gen-
DCF Discounted cash flow
eration could generate 1 GW [22]. These quantities represent
d Inner diameter of pipeline [m]
3.3% (CO2), 0.5% (SOx), and 0.6% (NOx), respectively, of the
E Voltage [V]
annual discharge of pollutant gases in China. Furthermore,
E_ Time-dependent voltage [V]
the reminiscent coal consumption of 953 Mt could be
e Electricity [W]
controlled.
e_ Exergy flow [J/mol]
ex Exit of the pipeline
Town gas alternative system. The quantity of heat generated
DG_ f Change of standard free energy of formation [J/mol]
by natural gas, which is supplied to Shanghai from Qinghai, is
g Acceleration of gravity [m/s2]
1508 GW per year. In contrast, the heat generated by
H_ Specific enthalpy [J/g]
hydrogen, assuming that it is supplied under the same
hc Heat transfer rate [W/(m2K)]
pressure and volume flow as the natural gas, is 482 GW
h Molar-specific enthalpy [J/mol]
(approximately 32%). As a result, this substitution of 32% of
i Discount rate
natural gas by hydrogen would reduce the generation of CO2,
J Quantity of electricity [Ah]
NOx, and PM2.5 by 26.64 Mt, 43.4 kt, and 3.55 kt, respectively,
J_ Time-dependent quantity of electricity [Ah]
every year.
k Surface roughness of the inner pipe
Li/j Length of pipeline section between i and j [m]
Lc Theoretical power of hydrogen compressor [W]
Conclusions
m_ Time-dependent molar flow rate [mol/s]
M Number of chemical reactions
An analysis method to estimate the economic gain and envi-
N Number of components of the substance
ronmental benefits was developed with the potential intro-
n Polytropic exponent
duction of a hydrogen supply chain using an existing gas
P Pressure [Pa]
pipeline that connects Qinghai, which is a potential area for
Pdb Dynamic payback period [year]
renewable energy sources, and Shanghai, whose energy de-
p_ Time-dependent electricity, heat or energy [W]
mand is high. In the proposed method, the energy and exergy
Dp_ Time-dependent loss of electricity [W]
flows of the proposed system were first quantified, and the
R Gas constant [J/(mol･K)]
overall efficiency of each quantity was obtained. Afterward,
rad Reaction rate [mol/s]
the years to recover the investment were obtained based on
Shc Heat transfer area [m2]
the overall energy efficiency using the DCF method. Further-
S_ Specific entropy [J/(g･K)]
more, the effects of the proposed hydrogen supply chain were
Srad Area of radiative heat transfer [m2]
also evaluated based on the reduction of air pollution gases,
T Temperature [K]
such as CO2 and PM2.5.
T* The first year for the DCF value to become positive
As a result, conversion ratios of 24.9% for electricity and
[year]
17.5% for heat were achieved, with the overall efficiency of the
Tg Outside air temperature [K]
system of 42.4%. The economic gain and environmental ben-
Tm Logarithmic mean temperature difference [K]
efits were also estimated considering two alternatives: a
Vnpv Payback period of the net present value [year]
power plant system and a town gas system.
v Volumetric flow [m3/s]
The time to recover the investments when using the net
Wg Mass flow of gas [g/s]
present value was 3 years for the power plant system and 2
years for the town gas alternative. Moreover, this period was Greek characters
estimated by the DCF method, which indicated 4.17 and 2.28 h Efficiency
years, respectively, for each system. h_ Time-dependent efficiency
The power supplied by the hydrogen supply chain would l Coefficient of friction
be equivalent to approximately 27% of the annual electricity rm Average density [kg/m3]
demand of China, which is also equivalent to 25.3% of the s StefaneBoltzmann constant [W/(m2･K)]
energy supplied by coal consumption. This substitution would 2wall Emissivity
also reduce the emission of CO2 (26.64 Mt), NOx (43.4 kt), and
PM2.5 (3.55 kt) every year. From these results, the proposed Subscript
analysis method was effective in evaluating the introduction a Insulation
of the hydrogen supply chain. abs Absorption
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