‘How Far Has the Hydrogen Society Come?’ Exploring South Korea’s Early Entry Potential and Answers in the Hydrogen Import Supply Chain

UNIST Professor Lim Hangwon's Team Publishes Study Verifying Economic and Environmental Feasibility of Import Model

Schematic diagram of overseas hydrogen import supply. Major hydrogen exporting and importing countries are indicated.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Yong-woo] When will South Korea become a ‘hydrogen society’?

A future society that uses hydrogen as a primary fuel is approaching. This future is the hydrogen society that countries around the world are competing to achieve.

A study that can gauge whether South Korea will enter the hydrogen society early has attracted attention.

Professor Lim Han-kwon’s team from the Department of Energy and Chemical Engineering at Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST), together with the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), announced research results that simultaneously evaluated the economic feasibility and environmental viability of a model importing hydrogen from overseas.

By calculating the costs and carbon dioxide emissions throughout the entire process of production, storage, and transportation, it is expected to be used as an indicator for policy establishment to build overseas hydrogen supply chains.

In academia, hydrogen import is seen as an alternative for advanced industrial countries such as South Korea, Germany, and Japan to enter the hydrogen society early.

These countries currently lack resources such as fossil fuels like natural gas for hydrogen extraction, renewable energy, and large-scale infrastructure, while energy demand is high, making hydrogen self-sufficiency difficult.

Kim Ah-yeon, the first author and a graduate student in the Department of Energy and Chemical Engineering, explained the motivation for the research: “Countries in similar situations, such as Japan and some European countries, are already conducting demonstration studies on models importing hydrogen from overseas, such as Australia. South Korea urgently needs research to materialize overseas supply chains.”

Professor Im Hangwon, UNIST.

Professor Lim’s team specified a hydrogen import model by converting Indonesian blue hydrogen into liquid carriers such as ammonia for maritime transport.

The case analysis showed that the production cost per kilogram of hydrogen was formed at about $3.45 to $3.72.

Although there are differences depending on the hydrogen production method and transportation method, this is considered similar to the 4,000 KRW per kilogram presented in the 2030 hydrogen economy roadmap.

Also, carbon dioxide emissions were about 9.64 kg to 18.4 kg.

Carbon dioxide emissions can be reduced by replacing the fuel of maritime transport vessels with eco-friendly fuels or by using renewable energy power for hydrogen liquid conversion.

Co-first author Lee Hyun-jun, a graduate student in the Department of Energy and Chemical Engineering, explained, “The simulation results show that importing hydrogen can achieve the 2030 target (4,000 KRW per kilogram) proposed in the government’s hydrogen economy activation roadmap, but to achieve the 2040 target (3,000 KRW per kilogram), additional research is needed to reduce costs in hydrogen production, transportation, and storage.”

The research team divided the entire process from hydrogen production to supply into five stages.

Hydrogen produced (i) by wet methane reforming and coal gasification methods is liquefied or converted (ii) into ammonia or liquid organic hydrogen carriers (LOHC) for maritime transport (iii).

The liquid carriers transported to the importing country are then converted back into hydrogen (iv), and supplied (v) to major consumption sites via special transport vehicles or pipelines.

A Case Study Analysis of Importing Indonesian Blue Hydrogen to Korea.

In addition to the case study, the team also conducted research comparing costs and carbon dioxide emissions at each stage to find the optimal supply route.

Professor Lim Han-kwon said, “This is the first study to evaluate the economic feasibility and environmental viability of a model importing hydrogen from overseas to South Korea throughout the entire cycle,” and predicted, “It will serve as a foundation for future evaluations of various overseas hydrogen supply models.”

This study was published on the 20th of last month in the Journal of Cleaner Production.

The research was conducted with support from the Hydrogen Energy Innovation Technology Development Project of the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) under the Ministry of Science and ICT, and the Korea Energy Technology Evaluation and Planning (KETEP) under the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.