A consideration of the economic efficiency of hydrogen production from biomass

A feasibility study of a hydrogen production system using woody biomass with a pyrolysis process was conducted as part of NEDO's WE-NET project. Using the pyrolysis process, various solid fuels and waste materials can be gasified, and synthesis gas suitable for hydrogen production can be obtained without the need for a pure oxygen supply. Using this system, it is expected that 7.4 billion m(3)/yr (NTP) of hydrogen from biomass stock will be produced for domestic supply in Japan. The capital cost of the plant used in this study is $3950/kW H-2 out, and product supply cost is 0.108 $/kWh H-2 out. (C) 2003 International Association for Hydrogen Energy. Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.