Energy Research Institute Develops Technology for Large-Scale Production of Eco-Friendly Ammonia

Securing Competitiveness in Large-Scale Clean Ammonia Production
Overcoming 100% Import Dependence on Ammonia Possible

Dr. Hyungchul Yoon and his research team at the Clean Fuel Research Laboratory of the Korea Institute of Energy Research have developed a mass production method capable of producing world-class low-pressure ammonia synthesis catalysts in large quantities.

Low-Pressure Ammonia Synthesis Pellet Catalyst

The catalysts produced using this technology were applied to an ammonia production process designed by the research team, successfully producing 99.9% high-purity ammonia at about one-third of the pressure required by the conventional Haber-Bosch process.

Ammonia (NH3), which has greatly contributed to solving humanity’s food problems as a raw material for synthetic fertilizers, has recently attracted attention as an eco-friendly hydrogen storage and transportation medium as well as a carbon-free fuel.

Group photo of the research team in front of the ammonia production process system
(From the center of the bottom row clockwise: Yoon Hyung-cheol, Principal Researcher; Lee Kyung-ho, Senior Researcher; Kim Jae-hyung, Senior Researcher;
Beom Hee-tae, Senior Engineer; Kim Sun-hyung, Principal Researcher; Shim Jun-mok, Principal Researcher)

The research team overcame the limitations of the conventional Haber-Bosch process and succeeded in developing a method for mass production of ammonia synthesis catalysts and catalyst shaping techniques. Furthermore, they established a laboratory-scale process capable of producing 1 kilogram per day (1 kg/d) of ammonia and succeeded in producing high-purity ammonia with 99.9% purity even at a low pressure of 50 bar.

The team commercialized a powder-form ruthenium/barium oxide catalyst, jointly developed with Professor Minki Choi’s team at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), by shaping it into pellet form for commercial use. Additionally, they developed a method to manufacture the catalyst at room temperature instead of the conventional high temperature of 160°C, reducing the catalyst synthesis time to one-third of the previous duration and improving production efficiency.

Using the catalyst mass production method developed by the research team and the independently designed ammonia production process, it is expected that the operating costs for ammonia production can be reduced by more than 15%. Moreover, the lowered pressure compared to existing processes reduces the manufacturing costs of process components such as compressors and reactors, thereby lowering the overall production costs.

Dr. Hyungchul Yoon, the lead researcher, stated, “Low-pressure, low-temperature, and low-cost ammonia production technology will be a key to accelerating the future of carbon neutrality and will significantly contribute to the localization of ammonia production plants for the introduction of clean hydrogen and carbon-free fuels in the future.”

Meanwhile, this research was conducted with support from the basic projects of the Korea Institute of Energy Research and the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries’ eco-friendly ship full-cycle innovative technology development project.

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