10 September 2023
 

Semiconductor solutions for green hydrogen

Recent years have seen a massive shift to hydrogen in politics and industry: Political decision-makers around the world are recognizing the central role of hydrogen in the fight against climate change while setting national targets and building international partnerships. Experts around the world associate hydrogen with the hope of adding more flexibility to our energy system, while reducing dependence on a diminishing supply of fossil resources. The innovations and technological breakthroughs in green hydrogen are expected to help humankind reach climate protection targets and live more sustainably as societies.

This chemical element indeed offers manifold capabilities: Besides being a versatile energy source, hydrogen can  be used for example as an energy carrier, as an option for storing enormous amounts of energy, or as fuel for vehicles. Used, for example, in a fuel cell, it emits only water vapor and warm air. However, while many tech companies are working to solve the various challenges related to hydrogen technology, the key is to use green hydrogen, produced both with renewable energy and at affordable costs. The rapid acceleration of renewable energy generation and massive build-up of electrolysis capacities are therefore prerequisites for a truly sustainable hydrogen economy. Infineon stands ready to support this transformation.

New: Tech explainer video – Infineon's solutions for hydrogen electrolysis (3:36 min)
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Deeper insights:  Infineon position paper on green hydrogen

Diverse fields of applications for green hydrogen

In many industries with a particularly high level of energy consumption, such as metallurgy, cement or heating, green hydrogen is expected to replace fossil fuel on a large scale. The same is true for the chemical sector (e.g. synthesis of plastics) and agriculture (e.g. fertilizers), which will use hydrogen in large quantities. Using fuel cell hydrogen is also expected to be crucial for decarbonization in the transportation sector, for example for railways, trucks or ships. And in the area of energy production, renewable energies such as solar and wind power are expanding massively. But their production is dependent on daylight and weather conditions, which is why options for large-scale energy storage using hydrogen as a storage medium are also becoming increasingly important. In all these areas, energy efficiency is the key, meaning that as little energy as possible should be lost during conversion or transmission thanks to semiconductor solutions.

Application page: Hydrogen electrolyzer

Supporting development of a sustainable hydrogen economy

Electric power generation from renewable energies

The combination of renewable energy and efficient power semiconductors from Infineon is a key lever in the large-scale production of green hydrogen. This is why Infineon is playing a decisive role in shaping the development of a green hydrogen economy – wherever technological challenges need to be mastered along the way. The core question is: What meaningful technical contributions can make to help the transformation to a decarbonized society using green hydrogen a success? As a leading manufacturer of power semiconductors for wind power and photovoltaic inverters, Infineon enables electricity generation from renewable energies, which is key to the production of green hydrogen.

Hydrogen technology in transportation to meet CO2 reduction targets

Transportation is a key sector in terms of meeting overall CO₂ reduction targets. As the market leader in automotive semiconductors, Infineon is a key enabler of electric vehicles and already supports the automotive industry on its path to zero-carbon mobility. Both battery electric vehicles and hydrogen-based fuel-cell electric drives will be needed to achieve decarbonization across different transportation types. The first hydrogen-powered passenger trains are already on the tracks in Europe and we will soon also see hydrogen in commercial vehicles, such as trucks, complementing electric drives. In general, the hydrogen-based fuel cell drive will most likely be the preferred option for heavier loads and longer distances, while battery electric drives will become the predominant solution for light commercial and passenger vehicles with ranges of up to 400 km.

Infineon Discovery: Hydrogen – the drive of energy transition?

Application page: Fuel-cell electric vehicle (FCEV) drivetrain system

Onsite production of green hydrogen at Infineon’s Villach site

Industries still need to solve key challenges in the areas of green hydrogen production, storage, transport and use in order to exploit the full potential of hydrogen and achieve net-zero energy efficiency. The first challenge is certainly the significant expansion of renewable energy generation, which provides the basis for green hydrogen production. In addition, a massive infrastructure with enormous electrolysis capacities will be needed to turn green electricity into hydrogen.

Accordingly Infineon is committed to reach carbon-neutrality by 2030 and is on track to do so with green hydrogen coming into play in the semiconductor industry itself. Chip production requires hydrogen as both a carrier and process gas, so the growing demand for chips means the demand for high-purity hydrogen is increasing, too. Consequently Infineon will join forces with Linde to build the first electrolysis plant for the onsite production of green hydrogen in the semiconductor industry at the Infineon production site in Villach, Austria.