Blue and green hydrogen

Subject: Economy

Context: Oil-Rich Abu Dhabi Targets Hydrogen as Future Export Fuel.

Concept:

Abu Dhabi is planning to use two of its sovereign wealth funds to turn the petroleum-rich emirate into an exporter of blue and green hydrogen.
Munich-based Siemens Energy is already building a hydrogen demonstration plant at the neighbouring emirate of Dubai.
This is done to diversify export amidst demand for cleaner fuels.

Potential for hydrogen fuel in Abu Dhabi:

Huge natural gas base, which it could use to develop what is known as blue hydrogen.
Ample sunshine, which can be harnessed to make a variant called green hydrogen

Hydrogen as fuel:

Hydrogen is a clean fuel that, when consumed in a fuel cell, produces only water. Hydrogen can be produced from a variety of domestic resources, such as natural gas, nuclear power, biomass, and renewable power like solar and wind.
Hydrogen is a versatile energy carrier that can be produced from a wide range of sources and used in many ways across the entire energy sector.
It can be produced from Solar-driven processes using light as the agent for hydrogen production
Water can be separated into oxygen and hydrogen through a process called electrolysis
Biological processes use microbes such as bacteria and microalgae and can produce hydrogen through biological reactions. In microbial biomass conversion, the microbes break down organic matter like biomass or wastewater to produce hydrogen, while in photo biological processes the microbes use sunlight as the energy source.

Grey, Blue and green hydrogen

When produced industrially from natural gas (which generates significant carbon emissions) it is known as “grey” hydrogen. (It is cheapest)
When hydrogen is produced from natural gas but carbon emissions are captured and stored, or reused it is called “blue” hydrogen. (price is influenced both by natural gas and carbon capture and storage)
The cleanest one of all is “green” hydrogen, which is generated by renewable energy sources without producing carbon emissions in the first place.