Ramping-Up Electro-Fuel Production

Energies, vol. 17, pp. 1928

Abstract

Future transport systems will rely on new electrified drives utilizing batteries and hydrogen-powered fuel cells or combustion engines with sustainable fuels. These systems must complement each other and should not be viewed as competing. Properties such as efficiency, range, as well as transport and storage properties will determine their use cases. This article looks at the usability of liquid electro-fuels in freight transport and analyzes the production capacities that will be necessary through 2050 in Germany. Different scenarios with varying market shares of electro-fuels are considered. A scenario with a focus on fuel cells foresees a quantity of 220 PJ of electro-fuels, i.e., 5.1 million tons, which reduces 80% of carbon dioxide emissions in LDV and HDV transport. A further scenario achieves carbon-neutrality and leads to a demand for nearly 17 million tons of e-fuel, corresponding to 640 PJ. Considering a final production rate of 5.1 million tons of electro-fuels per year leads to maximum investment costs of around EUR 350 million/year in 2036 during the ramp-up phase. The total investment costs for synthesis plants amount to EUR 4.02 billion. A carbon-neutrality scenario requires more than a factor 3 for investment for the production facilities of electro-fuels alone.

Authors 5

1. Ralf Peters corresponding

   Forschungszentrum Jülich · Jülich Aachen Research Alliance · Ruhr University Bochum

   Affiliation as printed

   Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Synthetic Fuels, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Universitätsstr. 150, 44801 Bochum, Germany

   Institute of Energy and Climate Research—Electrochemical Process Engineering (IEK-14), Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, Wilhelm-Johnen-Str., 52428 Jülich, Germany

   JARA-ENERGY, 52056 Aachen, Germany

2. Maximilian Decker Aachen Chair for Fuel Cells

   Forschungszentrum Jülich · RWTH Aachen University

   Affiliation as printed

   Chair for Fuel Cells, RWTH Aachen University, 52072 Aachen, Germany

   Institute of Energy and Climate Research—Electrochemical Process Engineering (IEK-14), Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, Wilhelm-Johnen-Str., 52428 Jülich, Germany

3. Janos Lucian Breuer Aachen Chair for Fuel Cells

   Forschungszentrum Jülich · RWTH Aachen University

   Affiliation as printed

   Chair for Fuel Cells, RWTH Aachen University, 52072 Aachen, Germany

   Institute of Energy and Climate Research—Electrochemical Process Engineering (IEK-14), Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, Wilhelm-Johnen-Str., 52428 Jülich, Germany

4. Remzi Can Samsun

   Forschungszentrum Jülich

   Affiliation as printed

   Institute of Energy and Climate Research—Electrochemical Process Engineering (IEK-14), Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, Wilhelm-Johnen-Str., 52428 Jülich, Germany

5. Detlef Stolten Aachen Chair for Fuel Cells

   Forschungszentrum Jülich · Jülich Aachen Research Alliance · RWTH Aachen University

   Affiliation as printed

   Chair for Fuel Cells, RWTH Aachen University, 52072 Aachen, Germany

   Institute of Energy and Climate Research—Techno-Economic System Analysis (IEK-3), Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, Wilhelm-Johnen-Str., 52428 Jülich, Germany

   JARA-ENERGY, 52056 Aachen, Germany