The Royal Society is the United Kingdom’s oldest, and arguably most venerable scientific community. It published a report on September 11, 2023 asking the UK government to place more emphasis on large scale hydrogen storage urgently. This because it believes these renewable energy storage facilities will provide stability, as more intermittent renewables come on line.
Why UK Needs Large Scale Hydrogen Storage
We append a link to the in-depth report by The Royal Society below. In overview terms, the UK government has committed to meeting the net-zero carbon target by 2050. Much of the new renewable energy will come from intermittent wind and solar. However, historical weather records predict times when these will be unable to meet total demand.
Therefore, the society says, the UK will require “large amounts of energy storage”. They anticipate these will be “some 1000 times larger than that provided by pumped hydro, and for many years to come”. Our minds go into overdrive when we try to imagine how many electrochemical batteries that would be. The Royal Society considered several alternatives including storing heat, compressed air, and hydrogen produced through electrolysis.
Why The Royal Society Favors Stored Hydrogen
The UK has ample geological salt deposits that could be “solution-mined” into caverns. These could provide physical space for large scale hydrogen storage. Although The Royal Society also recommends considering a hybrid approach, including a mix of nuclear power, and possibly burning some natural gas and biomass while capturing the carbon-dioxide.
However, The Royal Society is still convinced that large scale hydrogen storage is the best way to support solar and wind renewable energy. Therefore it calls on the UK government to create bulk storage facilities for hydrogen urgently. While simultaneously arranging “large-scale demonstrations of other storage technologies” too.
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