HERC Research Projects

The Hydrogen Energy Research Center (HERC) is collaborating on multiple industry-led projects to utilize Wyoming’s existing resources and transform them into potential feedstock for clean hydrogen including coal, natural gas, wind, solar and uranium. 

By leading critical research and development that addresses barriers and supports those emerging technologies that are most commercially ready for all forms of clean hydrogen, HERC is helping to advance hydrogen production through methods including low-cost coal via gasification, natural gas resources via methane reforming, high-capacity wind energy via electrolysis, potential for solar, nuclear, and more.

Program Areas in the Hydrogen Energy Research Center

Integration of Produced Water Thermal Desalination and Steam Methane Reforming

Partnered with Los Alamos National Laboratory; Engineering, Procurement and Construction LLC (EPC); and Williams, the project aims to demonstrate hydrogen production using water produced during oil and gas extraction. The project integrates a produced water thermal desalinization technology along with autothermal or steam methane reforming (ATR/SMR) for efficient hydrogen production. Success in this project would allow Wyoming to lead the emerging hydrogen industry without sacrificing any drinkable water.

 

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Wyoming Geohydrogen Exploration

Wyoming has been identified by the United States Geological Survey (USGS) Geologic Hydrogen Prospect map as a region with meaningful potential for naturally occurring, or geologic, hydrogen. This creates an opportunity to develop a new abundant, low-cost energy resource by leveraging the state’s existing strengths in the fossil fuel and mining industries. Advancing this resource could help diversify and future-proof Wyoming’s energy economy.

 

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Geologic Hydrogen

Sustainable H2 Production from Abiotic Catalyst-enhanced Stimulation of Iron-rich Rocks

H2ERC will be working on a University of Texas at Austin–led project to explore geologic hydrogen. The proposed $1.7 million project was selected for funding from the Department of Energy Advanced Research Projects Agency Energy (ARPA-E) and will aim to stimulate hydrogen production from iron rich rocks using natural catalysts. In collaboration with H2ERC, the team will explore the feasibility of this process on different rock types across the United States, including basalts from the Midcontinent Rift in Iowa, banded iron formations in Wyoming and ultramafic rocks in the Midwest.

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Advancing Blue Hydrogen Production and Transport Infrastructure in Wyoming

Wyoming Innovation Partnership

This project examines the technical, economic, environmental, social and policy issues related to nuclear-powered hydrogen produced from conventional and renewable gas resources in Wyoming. The team is led by faculty and researchers in UW’s Department of Civil and Architectural Engineering and Construction Management and the School of Energy Resources (SER), and in collaboration with Western Wyoming Community College (Western), the Wyoming Department of Workforce Services and Idaho National Laboratory. The project is currently in Phase III, and is focused on sharing opportunities in workforce development for a hydrogen economy.

Hydrogen: Make, Move, Use or Store

Building Capacity at UW

The “Hydrogen: Make, Move, Use or Store” initiative called for UW faculty members and researchers to submit proposals on hydrogen energy. Proposals selected have received seed funding for research projects. Topics of interest for the proposals included all levels of the supply chain, such as hydrogen production, use, transportation, and storage.

Several notable peer-reviewed publications and a growing ecosystem of hydrogen projects on campus have resulted from the initiative.