Energy Transition from Natural Gas to Hydrogen: Insights on Hydrogen Production from Aluminum silicate in Clay-Rich Rocks
By muhd nur ismail abdul rahman
Hydrogen is recognized as a clean fuel that significantly contributes to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, making it essential for the energy transition. However, large-scale hydrogen storage is challenging due to its volatility, compressibility, and flammability (Aslanehad et al., 2023). One promising option is geological storage, which is widely available in Malaysia and offers significant capacity. Despite this, the chemical properties of clay minerals in sandstone reservoirs, especially in relation to hydrogen storage, are poorly understood (Au & Leong, 2013; Jian et al., 2016). This lack of knowledge limits their use in energy storage and related applications. This study focuses on improving hydrogen production efficiency by examining the effects of brine (NaOH)-helium injection and analyzing petrophysical properties in sandstone core samples. The interaction between clay occlusions and brine-helium injection, potentially a game-changing storage method, has not been well-explored. Synthetic brine (NaOH) will be used to study the clay's reactivity in the pore medium in the presence of helium, with the goal of determining hydrogen output and evaluating the potential for small-scale geostorage.
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