The transition to zero carbon

Fossil fueled ammonia production is responsible for 1.6% of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, as the production plants conventionally use a fossil fuel input as their source of hydrogen. By switching to renewable electricity to make green ammonia we could save over 40 million tonnes of CO2 each year in Europe alone, or over 360 million tonnes worldwide.

The synthetic production of ammonia is not a new process. It was developed by Fritz Haber and Carl Bosch in the early 1900’s and is commonly known as the Haber-Bosch process: Nitrogen and Hydrogen are combined under pressure and temperature in the presence of a catalyst to produce ammonia (gas). The ammonia gas is then cooled to form liquid ammonia.

The Haber-Bosch process is a reversible reaction, which enables ammonia to act as a storage and transportation vector for hydrogen. By coupling the production process to renewable energy, there are no carbon emissions associated with the production of green ammonia. This opens up new direct and indirect markets, as it offers ways to decarbonise a range of sectors.

Green ammonia benefits for H2 supply

Using green ammonia for the supply of hydrogen has clear benefits. As the second most widely produced chemical in the world, 200 million tons of ammonia are produced each year. It is easy to transport and store with an existing global logistics and supply network. It doesn’t require high pressure storage like hydrogen and when ammonia is cracked to produce hydrogen no harmful pollutants are emitted.

The green ammonia landscape

Learn More