The oil trick with hydrogen

Hydrogenious LOHC Technologies GmbH has developed a technology that binds highly volatile hydrogen gas with oil. This achievement led to the company being nominated for a 2021 German Entrepreneurial Award (Deutscher Gründerpreis). Porsche Consulting will be supporting Hydrogenious's efforts to further scale up its activities.

Green hydrogen is considered one of the most important components of the energy transition sought the world over. Generated via electrolysis from renewable energies like wind or solar power without emitting greenhouse gases, it will play an essential transformative role in many areas of the economy—from the steel industry to glass production. One challenge is how to make sufficient quantities of green hydrogen available in economically viable ways. A key role is therefore played by imports from regions such as Spain, the Middle East, Africa, and Australia. However, storage and transport of this highly volatile gas have thus far proved difficult. The Hydrogenious LOHC Technologies company, based in the northern Bavarian city of Erlangen, offers a solution: a process it has developed by which green hydrogen is bound to an oil. “Packed in oil,” the gas can be stored and transported under ambient conditions. It is then released and the oil is reused for the next load.