When producing hydrogen (H₂), a relative humidity level of 30% is required. NovaSpark is working on technology that can produce H₂ at much lower humidity levels. The majority of the world has an at least 30% humidity level and the higher the humidity, the less energy is needed to extract the H₂. NovaSpark has a hyper efficient way of extracting water from the air that is different than your average dehumidifier, and about 20% to 40% more energy efficient.

H₂Tech (H₂T) sat down with Rick Harlow (RH), Chief Revenue Officer and Lanson Jones (LJ), Chief Innovation Officer for NovaSpark to discuss the benefits of decentralized H₂ production, including lower costs and increased efficiency. They emphasized the importance of reducing logistical costs associated with transporting H₂, particularly in the military context.

H₂T: How does NovaSpark’s H₂ generator integrate with renewable energy sources?

LJ: One of the unique things is the electrolyzer we use [anion exchange membrane (AEM)], which enables us to have more variable rates of energy input. When you have the throttling of the wind, or the energy cycle of the sun rising and setting, it is not always consistent. You must be able to store the variable energy source. A lot of the proton exchange membrane (PEM) electrolysis units are not very friendly for throttling up and down for the variable energy. We have made a unique adaptation for AEM electrolysis to enable it to throttle up and down with the energy source being renewable, allowing us to take full advantage when the sun is blazing and the wind is gusting, and if not, it isn’t causing electrolyzer degradation. That's another advantage of our system; we are running quietly and relatively cool compared to PEM and other forms of electrolysis.

H₂T: Is it a plug-in for AEM electrolyzers? How does it work?

LJ: Our patent is focused on the unique integration of electrolysis, atmospheric water generation and equipment with a high technology readiness level (TRL). These are not just prototypes, but are tried, tested and proven. However, connecting them in a unique way, managing the energy and the ability to take advantage of all the different variables requires software and AI to maximize their efficiencies, life duration and H₂ output.

H₂T: What advantages does NovaSpark’s patent pending, H₂ fueling solution offer over traditional diesel generators?

RH: Number one is that you don't have to have diesel fuel transported to the site. As I mentioned earlier, we are a veteran company, and we are going after ways to support not just the military, but the commercial side. The generator has a monopole wind turbine, and you can push the button to start generating power. It will continue to pull the moisture out of the air and process it through atmospheric water generation units, and then the press process via our electrolyzers.

Inputting that fuel into the fuel cell to generate electricity can be done anywhere from a kilowatt up to a megawatt scale. For example, we are working with defense innovation units. In fact, there are a couple of articles that have recently come out about where this mobile and modular unit is being used to generate fuel for drones. The unit can use hybrid inverters within the system and the fuel cells to generate electricity, whether you are talking about a small unit being pulled by a work truck or behind an 18-wheeler.

LJ: To add to that, you don't have the wear and tear of the belts and some of the failure points that diesel and gas generators have, so you have fewer moving parts that can break. That's another huge advantage and innovative approach that we've taken with our partners, making it so our electrolysis and system is vibration friendly, meaning it is very friendly to transport, whether it's on the road or in a plane. This is very unique in the H₂ space because most units are focused on stationary, fixed positions, while we create H₂ on the go, making it mobile and modular, which will lead to what we're seeing with airplanes and other sources that are really thinking about the same types of problems with vibration and always being in motion. We are putting together a unique integration of the different parts to make them mobile friendly.

H₂T: When you talk about mobile energy cost, are the cost savings due to wear and tear and the cost of diesel, or is there more to that?

The main difference is you can produce it on the go. The fuel source is wind, sun and water. We can create energy anywhere that the sun is shining, and the wind is blowing, and can also hook it up to a secondary energy source, if solar panels are present nearby, or there is another generator nearby. The system can basically go anywhere due to the small size. Not only can it fit on a trailer, but in one of the smallest military trailers out there.

Another really cool thing is that the unit is energy efficient. The unit uses hydraulics for the pressurization at 35 bar but can take it up to 15,000 psi for whatever device needs that type of pressure for storage. That's another unique thing about our system, is we can give you high pressure or 35 bar coming right out of the electrolysis unit. Our main focus right now is looking at the redundancies of safety and making it user friendly so anyone can operate it safely.