IHI REDUCES ENERGY CONSUMPTION FOR HYDROGEN PRODUCTION BY 40%/NATURAL GAS PYROLYSIS METHOD TO BE PUT INTO PRACTICAL USE BY LATE 2020

IHI announced on the 25th that it has begun testing hydrogen production using the ``pyrolysis of natural gas'' method. This method heats natural gas and decomposes it into solid hydrogen and carbon. Compared with the existing method of producing hydrogen by steam reforming, it is expected that the energy required to produce hydrogen per unit can be reduced by about 40%. Since more than 90% of the carbon produced from thermal decomposition is recovered in solid form, a significant reduction in carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions is expected. Using electricity derived from renewable energy as a heat source, the goal is to put it into practical use in gas-producing countries such as the United States and Australia by the end of the 2020s.