CCUS Integration in Hydrogen Production: Technological Advances, Sectoral Applications, and Future Perspective

Abstract

The integration of Carbon Capture, Utilization and Storage (CCUS) technologies into hydrogen production is gaining prominence as a transitional solution to reduce emissions in the energy sector. This study explores the technical, environmental, and economic dimensions of blue hydrogen production, which is based on natural gas reforming methods such as Steam Methane Reforming (SMR) and Autothermal Reforming (ATR) combined with CCUS. While grey hydrogen has a high carbon footprint, blue hydrogen significantly lowers emissions, achieving reductions of up to 90% depending on carbon capture efficiency. The research also compares various CCUS technologies including post-combustion, pre-combustion, and oxy-fuel combustion, alongside emerging alternatives like membrane separation and chemical looping. A techno-economic analysis highlights the trade-offs between capture efficiency, energy demand, cost, and scalability. Global and national hydrogen strategies, including Türkiye’s National Hydrogen Strategy, are examined in terms of CCUS integration potential. The study concludes that although challenges such as infrastructure, cost, and policy remain, CCUS-enabled blue hydrogen plays a significant role in the global energy transition toward net-zero targets.

Keywords

• Blue hydrogen
• Carbon capture, utilization and storage
• Steam methane reforming
• Hydrogen economy
• Energy transition

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