A review of hydrogen production using coal, biomass and other solid fuels

ABSTRACT

Solid fuels such as coal, biomass and solid waste are increasingly used with water to produce hydrogen, and the conversion processes have been enhanced through recent developments. An extended review of selected research and recent advances into hydrogen production from solid fuels is presented in this paper, focusing on novelty, understanding and application. Suggestions from the review include increasing attention on minimization of waste (material and energy) in processes through proper sizing of unit operations, especially those involving catalysts and rare chemical compounds; minimizing the number of components in solid fuels-to-hydrogen processes; increasing flexibility regarding demand-based operation of the system; proper integration of the benefits of new processes; adding multi-product capability to satisfy hydrogen demand; and coordinating the use of waste heat within systems.

KEYWORDS:

• Hydrogen production
• biomass
• solid fuel
• energy conversion
• coal

Acknowledgements

The authors kindly acknowledge the financial support provided by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

Funding was provided by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada.