Moving Beyond the Colors: The Full Life-Cycle Emissions of Hydrogen Production Pathways for California

Research Team: Timothy Lipman (lead), Arpad Horvath, Alissa Kendall, Lewis Fulton, Daniel Coffee, Stephanie Collins, and Pablo Busch

UC Campus(es): UC Berkeley, UC Davis, UCLA

Problem Statement: California policymakers are confronting a series of questions about the costs and benefits of using hydrogen fuel for transportation. To date, most of the vehicle electrification momentum has centered on battery-powered vehicles. While hydrogen is still considered an important option for the light-duty vehicle market, it is also emerging as a promising fuel option in the medium- and heavy-duty vehicle sectors, including buses, trucks, and goods delivery vehicles, as well as marine port and airport operations. One recurring concern about hydrogen is that its lifecycle emissions can vary widely because it can be produced from a variety of feedstocks. For hydrogen to play a significant role in California’s zero-emission vehicle future, it must be in its cleanest possible form. But how is clean hydrogen or “green hydrogen” defined and measured?

Project Description: This project examines the latest carbon intensity (CI) estimates for hydrogen production processes, adding important nuances to the general “colors of hydrogen” scheme that has been used in recent years. CI values for hydrogen production can vary widely both within and across hydrogen production pathways. The lowest CI pathways use biomass or biogas as a feedstock, and solar or wind power. This project also analyses jobs creation from new hydrogen production facilities and shows that these benefits can be significant for large-scale facilities based on either future biomass/biogasto- hydrogen or solar-hydrogen production technologies. Recommendations include setting stricter goals for the state’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) program to continue to reduce the carbon footprint of California’s transportation fuels.

Status: Completed

Budget: $135,000