In the CATCO2RE project, the Solhyd project collaborates with researchers from UGent university to produce renewable molecules from green hydrogen and CO2. In a lab-scale experiment, Solhyd technology was used to produce hydrogen gas which was directly fed into a methanator. This device is a reactor which catalytically converts hydrogen and CO2 into methane gas.  

Methane is the main component of natural gas. In natural gas, the methane is of fossil origin but it is also possible to produce synthetic, renewable methane. Note that renewable methane is also a greenhouse gas – but if methane leaks can be prevented and renewable CO2 molecules are used, it has the potential to provide a fuel which does not cause greenhouse gas emissions.

This successful experiment shows that it is possible to produce renewable methane using Solhyd technology. In a 5-hour measurement, the output of methane was stable. The performance was similar to an experiment in which industrial cilinders of ultrapure hydrogen gas was used. This shows that the hydrogen produced by Solhyd technology is sufficiently pure and does not contain trace impurities which could poison the methanation catalyst. This is an important achievement, but it is only a first step. The project partners will now assess the application potential of solar-to-methane technology, and the requirements to scale it up.