A solar microgrid system installed at Pearl Harbor Military Base will welcome hydrogen production, storage and utilization technology as part of a U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) project.
BWR Innovations has announced that it has been awarded a two-year subcontract by the U.S. Department of Defense to develop a replicable hydrogen fuel cell microgrid (H2MG).
The H2MG project will integrate gaseous and liquid hydrogen production, storage, and utilization technologies into an existing 1.5MW solar microgrid system at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickman (JBPHH) in Hawaii.
In operation since 2016, the Pacific Energy Assurance and Renewable Laboratory (PEARL) microgrid has demonstrated how military installations can meet energy demands, mission assurance, and cyber security.
By introducing hydrogen, research, development, testing and evaluation efforts are now demonstrating the feasibility and performance of hydrogen storage and power generation systems from solar power that support “island-ready microgrids” and will be evaluated.
BWR will offer a hydrogen fuel cell microgrid consisting of a 1MW electrolyser, a compressor, 600kg of hydrogen storage, a 600kW PEM fuel cell, and software to control and integrate the technology into an existing microgrid.
The North Dakota-based company said the hydrogen fuel cells, electrolyzers and pneumatic hydraulic equipment for storage will be manufactured in partnership with Intelligent Energy.
The project is expected to provide hydrogen safety protocols and operating procedures, a techno-economic analysis (TEA), and a business model for operation, said Dr. Joel Jorgenson, BWR President and CEO. , the company said it expects the project to reflect the importance of hydrogen. As a “key component” of microgrid solutions.
