The first customized solar hydrogen plant SolHub of Austria-based solar company Fronius has started construction. Producing 100kg of hydrogen each day, the plant can be used as a “gas station” for hydrogen fuel cell vehicles. It can refill roughly 16 units of vehicles each day, or allow one hydrogen truck to drive for 1,500km.
The SolHub solar hydrogen plant will be a part of SAN Group’s Biotech Park in Herzogenburg. It is expected to have a completely self-sufficient capacity, which requires an establishment of a 1.5MW rooftop solar system in the park. When converted to ground solar sites, a capacity of 1.5MW would require approximately 9,000 square meters of land area and more than 5,000 units of modules.
Martin Hackl, Global Director of the Solar Energy Business Unit from Fronius, commented that the solar power and water of the plant is used to produce green hydrogen, before fuelling hydrogen fuel cell vehicles. Through energy conversion, solar power can also be used during winter time, and 24/7 usage of solar power is then achieved accordingly.
As we all know, solar power is an intermittent energy bound by climate conditions that provides relatively unstable power and becomes useless after dusk or during gloomy weather. To extricate from weather restrictions, an energy storage system is required to store excessive power for uses after daytime and during nighttime. A hydrogen production method through water electrolysis can also be adopted to utilize energy in a different form.
The SolHub plant located at the industrial park of SAN Group is expected to initiate in Spring 2022 in the hopes of utilizing solar power 24/7, as well as providing hydrogen for hydrogen fuel cell vehicles. It is expected to produce 100kg of hydrogen each day that will fill up 16 units of vehicles or allow hydrogen buses and hydrogen trucks to drive for 1,500km.
For the next phase, Fronius will be establishing the Fronius Hydrogen Competence Center in Steinhaus, where it will continue its study, R&D, and production of hydrogen energy systems.
（Cover photo source: Fronius）
