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Researchers map so-called white hydrogen as next clean fuel source
Work in the U.S., Canada, and Australia aims to find underground hydrogen that could be mined, offering a potential alternative to costly green hydrogen.
OilPrice reports that researchers and start-ups are mapping and discovering sources of naturally occurring hydrogen, sometimes called geologic or white hydrogen, in the search for new ways to supply clean energy.
The outlet says white hydrogen would be mined from underground rock formations rather than produced through electrolysis using renewable power, which is how green hydrogen is currently obtained.
OilPrice adds that several recent discoveries have boosted hopes that mined natural hydrogen could become an alternative as green hydrogen production has faced high costs and weaker-than-expected project outcomes.
Most recently, the publication points to findings announced in Australia, where scientists reported a potentially large hydrogen source in Western Australia’s iron ore deposits in the Pilbara region, tying the study to magnetite in those deposits.