H2Pro

Abstract

Most of the world’s hydrogen is made unsustainably from methane or coal, and today most of it is used to produce petroleum-based fuels and chemicals. But the start-up H2Pro says hydrogen could also be key to slowing climate change if it is made without fossil fuels. This can be done by taking hydrogen out of water using renewable electricity. Scientists have long known how to extract hydrogen from water. But existing electrolyzers, the machines used to split water molecules , convert only about 70% of the electric energy they use into chemical energy, which is stored as hydrogen. H2Pro has devised a two-step process that generates hydrogen and oxygen in separate steps, ensuring they don’t mix. Hen Dotan, H2Pro’s cofounder and chief technology officer, says his company’s technology converts about 95% of the electricity it uses into chemical energy, a rate that would yield substantial financial savings at commercial scale.