28th February 2024 (9 Topics)
The Global Race for Green Ammonia Production
Context
The quest for sustainable agriculture and energy solutions has ushered in an era of innovation, with companies worldwide striving to produce green ammonia.
What is green ammonia and how is it produced?
- It is also known as renewable ammonia.
- To produce green ammonia, green hydrogen must first be obtained through a process of water electrolysis.
- That is, water is decomposed into hydrogen and oxygen, using electrical energy generated from renewable sources.
- The hydrogen is then combined with atmospheric nitrogen through a process known as Haber-Bosch synthesis, which allows hydrogen and nitrogen to react at high pressure and temperature in the presence of a catalyst to form ammonia.
- The end result is the production of green ammonia using green hydrogen and atmospheric nitrogen.
- Main uses of green ammonia
- It is used in production of agricultural fertilisers
- It is also used as a raw material in the production of a variety of chemical products, such as nitric acid, synthetic fibres, explosives, dyes and pharmaceuticals.
- Other potential usage: as a fuel for ships, as a fuel in boilers, turbines or enginesto generate heat and electricity
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Green ammonia |
Grey ammonia |
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Formation
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It is a form of ammonia that is produced using renewable energy sources |
Ammonia, or NH3, is nothing more than nitrogen and hydrogen, both highly abundant elements. |
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Co2 emission |
Green ammonia does not emit CO? in its production process. |
Ammonia’s production process, emits 2 tonnes of CO? for every tonne of ammonia. |
Challenges
- High cost: The cost of making green ammonia is very high today compared to brown ammonia due to two major cost-components: a) electrolyzer and b) green power.
- Storage issues: Storage of hydrogen, separated using electrolysis of water, is also a challenge today leading to disruption of a continuous supply of feedstock to the ammonia plants.
How is it an opportunity for India?
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With the existing non-fossil-fuel capacity at around 186 GW, of which approximately 179 GW is renewable, India aim to add 50 GW of renewable capacity capacity annually, targeting 500 GW by 2030. |
- In 2023, India is about 60 MMTPA fertilizer consumption nation. This will grow to about 135 MMTPA by 2050.
- The concomitant requirement of ammonia will also balloon.
- The demand, therefore, is massive. The opportunity to reduce the carbon-footprint is enormous.
- India is gearing up to establish about 5.8 million tonnes of green ammonia manufacturing across various regions.
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