Charles Darwin University has produced hydrogen for the first time in a collaboration with Pacific Energy at the university’s renewable energy facility at East Arm.

Faculty of Science and Technology pro vice-chancellor and Energy Resources Institute director Professor Suresh Thennadil said during the testing phase at at its Renewable Energy Microgrid Hub for Applied Research and Training at East Arm it produced hydrogen with the fuel cell producing 5kW of electrical output.

Prof Thennadil said the university was using a containerised hydrogen electrolyser and fuel cell system, which was to designed, installed and commissioned by Pacific Energy, a specialist in designing and building power generating assets.

The electrolyser, through electrolysis, splits water into hydrogen and oxygen gases, with the hydrogen stored for future use, and produces no harmful emissions, he said.

“The installation of a containerised hydrogen electrolyser and fuel cell system, significantly enhances our ability to study hydrogen production and its feasibility as an energy source for fuelling the grid,” Prof Thennadil said.

“This upgrade provides a unique and flexible platform to study renewable energy systems, particularly small regional and remote grids, which are common throughout the NT.

“We wanted to see how the (hydrogen electrolyser) would integrate into the grid because it can also serve potentially as an energy source.

“This will also enable us to better understand the challenges and intricacies associated with incorporating hydrogen as an additional energy source as well as the durability of electrolysers and other components under local climatic conditions.

“You will hear a lot of people say hydrogen is expensive, but suppose we had five days of no sun and you can’t run things on battery, so you need long term storage, and this could be an option.”

Prof Thennadil said its REMHART facility was being used to train workers and serve as an innovation platform for industry by testing new hydrogen and other renewable technologies.

The REMHART facility was set up with $2 million of funding from the federal government under the Strategic University Reform Fund program.