Hyvolution Non-thermal production of pur hydrogen from biomass

01.01.2006 - 31.12.2011
Research funding project
HYVOLUTION is an Integrated Project within the EU¿s 6th Framework Programme on Sustainable Energy Systems with the aim to develop a blue-print for an industrial bioprocess for decentral hydrogen production at small-scale from locally produced biomass. The novel approach in HYVOLUTION - based on a combined bioprocess employing thermophilic and phototrophic bacteria, to provide the highest hydrogen production efficiency in small-scale, cost effective industries - will help meeting the target to deliver a 10-25 % coverage of the EU demand for hydrogen, for use in power or bio-fuel production, at 10 Euro/GJ. The 2-stage bioprocess consists of a thermophilic fermentation step to produce hydrogen, CO2 and intermediates followed by a photo-heterotrophic fermentation, in which all intermediates will be converted to hydrogen and CO2, to achieve an efficiency of 75%. Dedicated gas upgrading is developed for optimal gas cleaning and gas quality protocols at small-scale production units. The units must be designed to handle small and frequently changing flow rates with different compositions. Modelling and simulation of the unit processes together with innovative system integration and combining mass and energy balances with exergy analyses, will provide minimal energy demand and maximal product output and therefore reduce production costs. Process integration also involves the development of control strategies for the novel bioprocess. In HYVOLUTION, 11 EU countries, Turkey and Russia are represented. The multinational and multidisciplinary consortium consists of prominent specialists from academia and industries as well as 7 SME's which warrants high quality and commercial exploitation of project results.

People

Project leader

Project personnel

Institute

Grant funds

  • European Commission (EU) 6.FP: SUSTDEV - Sustainable development (energy, transport, global change & ecosystems) 6.Rahmenprogramm für Forschung European Commission - Framework Programme European Commission Call identifier FP6-2004-Enery-3 Application number 019825

Research focus

  • Sustainable Production and Technologies: 20%
  • Modeling and Simulation: 80%

Keywords

GermanEnglish
BiotechnologieBiotechnology
Biowasserstoffbio hydrogen
Prozesssimulationprocess simulation
Erneuerbare EnergieRenewable energies

External partner

  • National Technical University of Athens
  • Adas Holding Ltd.
  • RWTH Aachen
  • Wageningen Agricultural University
  • PROFACTOR Produktionsforschungs GmbH
  • Provalor BV
  • Enviros Consulting Ltd.
  • Lund University
  • Awite Bioenergie, Martin Grepmeier & Ernst Murnleitner GbR
  • VUC Praha
  • Bioreactors and membrane systems
  • Technogrow. B.V.
  • Wiedemann Polska
  • A.V. Topchiev Institute of Petrochemical Synthesis, Russian Academy of Science
  • Wroclaw University of Technology
  • Agrotechnology & Food Innovations B.V.
  • University of Szeged
  • Middle East Technical University
  • Air Liquide - Technologies and Innovation Department

Publications