Is methane the answer to the energy transition problem?
Gérard Gatt
President at Sakowin Green Green Energy – Making decarbonization a technical and economical reality. #Hydrogen #Plasmalysis #Deeptech
Everyone knows we must reduce CO2 output and get rid of processes that burn carbon. I believe there is a better, easier, faster way to do that than banning fossil fuels, and that better way involves methane.
COVID showed us something
When COVID-19 brought the entire world to a standstill in March 2020, we clearly saw that the problematic levels of greenhouse gas emissions were caused by human activity—human overactivity—here on our beautiful planet.
We know this because when we drastically reduced our use of airplanes, cars, trucks and factories for those two weeks of global shutdown, CO2 emissions came down to “naturally” manageable levels -- down to levels that that Planet Earth was able to “clean” all by herself.
Unmanageable levels of greenhouse gas emissions are our fault, and carbon capture schemes are simply not efficient enough to bring them down to manageable levels.
Better than carbon capture: decarbonizing methane
I believe that methane is the answer to the challenge of reducing greenhouse gas emissions -- if we decarbonize it before using it to make energy.
Methane molecules each contain one carbon atom and four hydrogen atoms (CH4). Through a process called plasmalysis, we can separate the carbon and the hydrogen, and then use both in climate-friendly ways.?
Hydrogen has value
Methane plasmalysis produces hydrogen. Hydrogen combustion produces energy without emitting any greenhouse gasses at all.
Hydrogen is already widely used in petroleum refining, food processing and the production of electronic components, semiconductors, steel and chemicals.
In fact, an estimated 94 million metric tons of hydrogen were used on Earth in 2021, and that is expected to reach up to 680 million metric tons by 2050. There is interest in using hydrogen for heating homes and offices, for powering even more industrial processes and to power fuel cells in trucks, busses, construction vehicles, trains and passenger cars.
Solid carbon also has value
Methane plasmalysis also produces carbon in a form known as solid carbon.
Solid carbon is used as a reinforcing agent in the production of tires, in mechanical parts manufacturing, in paint and ink production, in the steel industry and more.
In the construction and building materials business, solid carbon can be used to reduce the CO2 imprint of cement, concrete or tar, as well as reinforce their strength and flexibility.
Solid carbon can also be used in agriculture to improve water retention, promote plant growth and improve soil's natural ability to remove CO2 from the atmosphere. Used as a seed coating, solid carbon can improve germination rates by protecting seeds from pests and diseases and providing seedlings with a source of nutrients.
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Biomethane, too
Plasmalysis can also be performed on biomethane, a renewable fuel produced by the breakdown of organic matter such as agricultural waste, food waste and animal manure.
Biomethane has a negative carbon footprint because it is derived from the CO2 that plants remove from the air during photosynthesis. Performing plasmalysis on biomethane instead of using it in combustion processes contributes meaningfully to the reduction of CO2 in the atmosphere, removing between 10 and 12 kilograms of CO2 for every kilogram of hydrogen produced.
In short: Methane is our ally in fighting climate change
I believe that methane is an important answer to the energy transition problem, if we decarbonize it before using it to make energy. And the best and most “win/win” way to decarbonize methane is to use to it make hydrogen via plasmalysis.
I believe in methane plasmalysis
Confession time: I’m not a neutral observer of methane plasmalysis.
Sakowin, the company I founded in 2017 and have the great honor of leading today, is a pioneer in using methane plasmalysis to produce hydrogen and solid carbon.
Sakowin’s patented equipment for energy-efficient, cost-efficient, on-site, on-demand hydrogen production can be integrated into existing industrial and gas infrastructures. We are also working on ways to help our customers sell the solid carbon by-product.
We have already raised over 8 million euros. We have the support of the European Innovation Council, the European Union’s flagship innovation program. In March 2022, Bpifrance qualified us as one of their official Deeptech companies. ?
I’m proud of the work we do at Sakowin and our contribution to accelerating the energy transition -- and I hope I’ve piqued your interest in the possibilities of methane plasmalysis.
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Connect with me or someone else on the team at Sakowin. We’d love to talk with you about how our solution could be integrated into your current industrial or gas infrastructure.
MORE: Read about why “turquoise” hydrogen produced by methane plasmalysis is much better for the planet than “green” hydrogen produced by water electrolysis.
Sources of the facts and figures cited in this article
Globally recognized technology, social entrepreneur, AI, Hydrogen and early architect behind today’s pervasive cloud computing model.
1 年As someone who has been working on sustainable energy tech for the past 15 years, Sakowin's hydrogen and 100% carbon capture using a methane or bio-methane feedstock proves to be the lowest energy, zero emissions, no water use winner!! Well done Gerard.